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1999 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  N  -.'  -s  /  Notes  techniques  et  bibliographiques 


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3 


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Bibliotheque  nacionale  du  Canada 


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derniAre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  dillustration,  soit  par  le  second 
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premiAre  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  dillustration  et  en  terminant  par 
la  derniAre  page  qui  comporte  une  telle 
empreinte. 

Un  des  symboles  suivants  apparaitra  sur  la 
derni*re  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
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et  de  haul  en  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  n*cessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  m*thode. 


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S'iCIAL  F^ORGEf 
AMERICAN  HISTORY' 


A.M.  SIMONS 


;«•:!!•-; 


.  -.  ~fii  ---V,  .i.  j^  ^  V-  ^J. 


SOCIAL    FORCES 
IN   AMERICAN    HISTORY 


THE  MACMII.LAN'   COMPANY 

NKW   VOKK    •     lUJSTfiN         I  HILAOO 
SAN    KRANLlSLC) 

MACMII.LAN   &  CO  ,  Limited 

UIMION   •    lUiMnAY    •    CALCLTTA 
HKI  BOL'RNE 

THE  MACMILLAN  CO.   OF  CANADA,  Ltd. 

TORONTO 


SOCIAL  FORCES 


IN  AMERICAN  HISTOR\ 


/ 


HY 


A.    M.    SIMONS 


I 


XEtD  gorfe 
THE    MACMILLAN    COMPANY 

1912 

All  rights  reserved 


131011 


CorvFir.KT,  191 1, 
Bv   THE   MACMIL1.AN   COMPANY. 

S*|  up  and  electrotype^.     Published  ULtober,  i^ii       Reprinted 
January,  i^ia. 


XottOQCitl  J^rciii 

J.  S.  (.'u.^hlii;;  (■.).  -     i;,r«i,k  A  Smith  Co. 

Nurwoml,  Mu.t>.,  t'.f.A. 


TO    MY    WIFE 

MAY    WOOD    SIMONS 

WIICSK    CONTIN'UOrS    ( OOl'KKATION    AND    ADVICE 

AT    AI  r.    STACKS     OK    THIS    WORK 

MIGHT    WKI.I.    KNTITI.E    HF.R    TO    BE    NAMED 

AS   COAUTHOR 


PREFACE 


That  political  struggles  are  based  upon  economic 
interests  is  to-day  disputed  by  few  students  of  society. 
The  attempt  has  been  made  in  this  work  to  trace  the 
various  interests  that  have  arisen  and  struggled  in  each 
social  stage  and  to  determine  the  influence  exercised  by 
these  contending  interests  in  the  creation  of  social  insti- 
tutions. 

Back  of  every  political  party  there  has  always  stood 
a  group  or  class  which  expected  to  profit  by  the  activity 
and  the  success  of  that  party.  When  any  party  has  at- 
tained to  power,  it  has  been  because  it  has  tried  to  estab- 
lish institutions  or  to  modify  existing  ones  in  accord  with 
its  interests. 

Changes  in  the  industrial  basis  of  society  —  inven- 
tions, new  processes,  and  combinations  and  methods  of 
producing  and  distributing  goods  —  create  new  interests 
with  new  social  classes  to  represent  them.  These  im- 
provements in  the  technique  of  production  are  the  dy- 
namic element  that  brings  about  what  we  call  progress 
in  society. 

In  this  work  I  have  sought  to  begin  at  the  origin  of  each 
line  of  social  progress.  I  have  first  endeavored  to  de- 
scribe the  steps  in  mechanical  progress,  then  the  social 
classes  brought  into  prominence  by  the  mechanical 
changes,  then  the  struggle  by  which  these  new  classes 
sought  to  gain  social  power,  and,  fmally,  the  institutions 

vU 


via 


PRKFACE 


which  were  created  or  the  alterations  made  in  existing 

nsuut.on.  asa   consequence   of  the  stru,,l..   or  as: 
rt>ult  of  the  \utory  of  ;,  new  class. 

It  has  seemed  to  me  that  these  underlvin^  social  forces 
are  o  more  m^portance  than  the  indiN-Jduals  that  were 
forced  to  the  front  in  the  process  of  these  stru-^des  o 
even  than  the  laws  that  were  estabh'shed  to  record'  the 
results  of  the  conHict.  In  short,  I  have  tried  to  describe 
the  dynamics  of  history  rather  than  to  reconl  the  ac- 

comphs  cd  facts,  to  answer  the  question.  '-Whv  did  it 
happen  ^     as  well  as.  "What  hai)pened  ■-'•• 

An  inquiry  into  causes  is  manifestly  a  greater  task  than 
he  recordm.  of  accomplishe<i  facts.     It  is  certain  that 
I  have  made  some  mistakes,  probably  a  great  manv   in 
analyzn.,  the  underlying  forces  of  so  complex  a  thing  as 
Ameruan  social  deve!o,,ment.     The  llnding  of  such  mis- 
akes  w,  1  prove  nothing  as  to  the  method  save  that  the 
eisure  of  Wn  very  busy  3ears  in  the  life  of  one  individual 
s  all  too  short  a  time  in  which  to  trace  to  their  origin 
he  multaude  of  forces  that  have  been  operating  in  Amer 
lean  riistory. 

This  work  has  been  the  more  difTicult  since  only  a  few 
histonans,  and  these  only  in  recent  years,  have  given 
any    attention    to    this    viewpoint.     It    was,    therefore 
necessary  for  me  to  spend  much  time  in  the  study  o^ 
onginal  documents,  "  -  the  newspapers,  magazines  and 
pamph  et  literature  of  each  period.     In  these.'rather  'than 
m  the     musty  documents"  of  state,  do  we  llnd  history 
in  the  makmg.     Here  we  can  see  the  clash  of  contending 
interests  before  they  are  crystallized  into  laws  and  ir- 
stitutions. 

I  have  not  sought  after  new  or  bizarre  facts.     I  have 


PREFACE 


IX 


M 


sought  rather  to  understand  the  reasons  for  those  whose 
existenee  is  undisputed.  (Occasionally  I  have  found 
things  which  seemed  to  be  neglected  in  the  familiar  his- 
tories and  have  stated  these.  In  my  references,  also, 
I  have  tried  to  name  the  most  accessible  works  rather 
than  to  niultii)ly  references  and  strain  after  scholastic 
effi-ct  with  many  citations  of  seldom  used  and  almost 
inaccessible  material. 

In  this  connection  it  should  be  stated  that  most  of  this 
work  was  written  before  the  publication  of  the  "Docu- 
mentary History  of  American  Society,"  edited  by  Dr. 
R.  T.  Ely  and  John  R.  Commons  of  the  University  of 
Wisconsin.  Otherwise  I  should  have  made  more  fre- 
fjuent  reference  to  its  pages.  Thanks  to  the  courtesy 
of  these  editors,  however.  I  had  an  opportunity  to  con- 
sult their  notes  and  the  original  publications  ujwn  which 
that  work  is  based,  and  this  service  is  here  gratefully 
acknowledged. 


4 

J 

i 


rK.'-,7  ' 


1 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER   I 

COND    .iONS    LEADING    TO    DISCOVERY      .  .  .  . 

CHAPTER   n 
Causes  ok  Colonization     .... 


•        • 


rACB 

I 


12 


CHAPTER   HI 
What  the  Colonists  found  in  America 


21 


CHAPTER   IV 


The  Colonial  Stage 


30 


CHAPTER  V 
The  Growth  of  Solidarity 

CHAPTER  VI 
Causes  of  the  Revolution 


•  • 


55 


6o 


4 


The  Revolution 


CHAPTER  VII 


CHAPTER  VIII 


Formation  of  the  Government 


70 


81 


M 


^2^ 


Xll  cox  T  I.  NTS 

CHAPTER    IX 

iN-nt-STKIAI.   Cf..M)ITK)NS  AT  TIIK    HKfilNMNf;  OF  TMI-    AMERI- 
CAN   (iOVEKNMKNT    . 

100 

CHAPTER   X 

RLI.K   ok    Co.MMKKCK   AM)    FlNANCK ,3,^ 

CHAPTER   XI 
Rlle  of  Commerck  Asi)  Frontier    .        .  ,.n 

CHAPTER   XH 
The  Westward  March  of  a  Peoi'ee        .        .  .     lu 

CHAPTER   XIII 

The  Birth  of  the  Factory  System  ,., 

•        •        •        .143 

CHAPTER  XIV 
Changing  Interesvs 

CHAPTER  XV 
The  First  Crisis  — 1819 160 

CHAPTER   XVI 

Condition    of    the    Workers    in    the    Childhood   of 

Capitalism     . 

170 

CHAPTER  XVII 
The  First  Labor  Movement  — 1824-1836  .        ,  170 


wMMM^^t^i^ 


CONTEXTS 


ZUl 


CHAPTER    XVIII 
Tm;  Youth  of  Cai'ITAI.i.sm  —  1830-1850     . 

CHAPTER   XIX 
Why  thk  Civil  War  Came         .... 

CHAPTER   XX 
The  Crisis  in  the  Chattel  Slave  System 

CHAPTER   XXI 
Rise  ok  Northern  Capitalism  .... 

CHAPTER   XXII 
The  Armeu  Conflict  ok  Sectional  Interests 

CHAPTER  XXIII 


FACE 


216 


222 


.       238 


.       264 


Reconstruction 285 


CHAPTER   XXIV 
Triumph  and  Decadence  of  Capitalism 


304 


iM^j-uid'^^^m^^-^ 


1 


'■^^^•i^ 


THE  SOCIAL  FORCES 


OF    THE 


HISTORY  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES 


CHAPTER  I 


CONDITIONS   LEADING  TO   DISCOVERY 

American  history  is  usually  made  to  begin  with  the 
voyage  of  Columbus.  Since  all  historical  beginnings  are 
more  or  less  arbitrary,  the  especial  starting  point  is  of 
no  great  importance. 

History,  like  time,  its  principal  element,  has  neither 
beginning  nor  end.  American  social  institutions  have 
their  roots  far  back  in  the  days  to  which  history  does  not 
run.  With  these  origins  the  historian  does  not  deal. 
Here  he  gives  way  to  tue  anthropologist,  the  biologist, 
and  the  geologist. 

The  stream  of  social  evolution  which  bore  the  first 
germs  of  American  society  had  its  main  source  in  Europe. 
The  social  genealogy  of  America  goes  back  to  Greece 
and  Rome,  and  from  these  comes  down  through  Germans, 
French,  and  English,  rather  than  through  Mound  Builder, 
Pequod,  and  Iroquois. 

Since  the  voyages  of  Columbus  form  the  first  link  in 
the  chain  that  was  to  bring  these  European  influences 
to  these  shores,  a  knowledge  of  European  society  at  the 


.^-^ 


t^.'^^ 


2  SOCIAL    l(JUCi;S    IN    AMKKICAX    III-ToRV 

time  of  those  voya^'cs  and  tlic  fon  cs  that  U'd  to  thfm  is 
essential  to  an  underslandini^  of  American  history. 

The  "Age  of  Discovery,"  in  wliich  the  voyai^es  of 
Columbus  were  the  mo>t  striking'.  thoUf,'h  by  no  means 
isolated  events,  came  during  that  period  of  great  social 
transformation  known  as  the  Reformation. 

It  was  the  period  of  the  revival  of  (ireek  learning,  of 
the  Decline  of  tlu-  Ron-.an  Kmi)ire  and  the  Papacy,  of  the 
disappearance  of  feudalism  and  chivalry,  when  towns  and 
nations  were  growing  at  the  expense  of  feudal  tenures, 
and  commerce  and  manufacturing  were  taking  on  new 
forms  and  new  life.  It  was  a  day  not  so  much  of  a  re- 
birth of  old  tilings  as  of  the  birth  of  those  new  things 
whose  clima.x,  as  capitalism,  is  the  dominant  feature  of 
the  United  States  to-day.* 

A  number  of  revolutionary  inventions  were  primarily 
responsible  for  these  industrial,  political,  and  religious 
changes.  In  navigation  the  compass  had  but  recently 
made  il  possible  to  guide  a  ship  beyond  the  sight  of  land- 
marks. Without  the  compass  the  Mediterranean  marked 
the  limit  of  navigation.  The  "world"  surrounding  this 
sea  was  the  extent  of  human  knowledge.  Now  the  navi- 
gator could  carry  his  landmarks  with  him.  and  the 
Atlantic  could  be  crossed  with  as  certain  accuracy  as  if 
its  western  shore  were  visible  from  the  Pillars  of  Hercules. 
The  astrolabe  now  gave  the  location  of  a  \  -ssel  by  its 
relation  to  astronomical  bodies.  These  inventions  broke 
all  boundaries  to  the  possibility  of  exploration. 

The  invention  of  gunpowder  and  its  application  to  war 

produced  equally  far-reaching  results.     The  first  crude 

firearms  sufficed  to  render  the  humble  foot  soldier  more 

>  Henry  Cabot  Lodge,  "  Close  of  the  Middle  .-\ges,"  pp.  518 


5U). 


CONIMTIONS    LI.ADINO    TO   UISCUVKRY 


than  a  mauh  for  the  best  ecjuippcd  and  armored  knight. 
The  feudal  castle  was  not  inipre«nal)le  even  to  the  very 
|jc-innint;s  of  artillerv-.     Ihnceforth  military  power  was 
with   him  who   could   maintain   the  largest   number  of 
si)l(liers  and  not  to  the  strongest  arm  and  the  most  easily 
i       defended  castle.     Gunpowder  played  a  decisive  part  in 
?        military  affairs  at  the  battle  of  Crecy  in  1346  and  the 
I        siege  of  Constantinople  in  1453. 

To  this  period  also  belong  the  invention  of  printing 
with  movable  type,  and  the  manufacture  of  paper  on  a 
commercial  scale.* 

These  industrial  changes  tended  to  bring  the  merchant 
class  into  a  iwsition  of  social  supremacy.  Hitherto 
public  opinion  had  despised  the  merchant.  He  was  fair 
prey  for  the  ruling  class  of  robber  barons.  Commerce 
was  looked  upon  with  disdain.^  The  passing  merchant 
was  considered  a  legitimate  source  of  revenue  by  the 
nobility  and  their  retainers.  What  would  now  be  -'  •  >si- 
fied  as  highway  robbery  was  by  all  odds  the  mc  re- 
spectable industry  in  central  Europe  for  some  centuries 
prior  to  the  discovery  of  America. 

The  ideas  of  the  dominant  industrial  class,  the  landed 
nobility,  became  the  standard  of  morality  as  preached  by 
the  Church. 

"The  Church  was  ver>-  hostile  to  commerce.  The 
theologians  sought  to  show  that  it  was  unproductive, 
and  they  especially  denounced  the  trade  in  money,  con- 
fusing the  taking  of  interest  with  usury.     For  many  of 

>  The  first  French  mill  for  the  manufacture  of  paper  was  erected  in 
iiSq,  the  first  Knt'lish  one  in  1330,  and  the  first  (Jerman  one  in  13QO. 

»  Paul  Risson,  "  Histoire  Sommaire  du  Commerce,"  p.  156;  William 
Clarence  Webster,  "  GeneraJ  History  ot  Commerce,"  p.  yo. 


4  SOCIAL   FOKCF.S   IN   AMKRIC.W    HISTORY 

them,  tvcn  in  the  sixteenth  century,  merth;ints  were 
liars,  |)erjurers,  and  tliieves."  * 

The  invcntiijus  to  which  reference  has  been  ni.ulo  were 
chani^'in^'  all  this.  They  were  promoting?  the  growth  of 
towns,  the  extension  of  trade,  the  knowledge  of,  and 
therefore  the  desire  for,  luxuries  which  only  commerce  and 
the  merchants  could  i)r()vide.  The  Ousades  took  many 
of  the  nobility  away,  and  left  their  estates  in  the  hands  of 
merchant  princes  who  had  taken  this  property  as  security 
for  the  expense  of  a  crusading  outfit. 

As  the  merchants  grew  in  power  they  became  respect- 
able, and  commerce  became  a  virtue.  When  merchant 
bankers,  like  the  Fuggers,  were  able  to  dictate  terms  of 
peace  and  war  to  kings  and  emperors,  we  no  hunger  hear 
the  merchants  referred  to  as  "liars,  perjurers,  and 
thieves." 

By  the  fifteenth  century  the  merchants  were  the  ruling 
class  in  Europe.  The  great  commercial  cities  of  the 
Mediterranean  and  of  the  north  of  Europe  were  more 
powerful  than  many  nations,  and  within  these  cities  rich 
merchants  arbitored  the  political  destinies  of  the  known 
world.  Any  merchant-ruled  society  seeks  new  markets. 
The  pressure  for  exploration  at  this  period  was  stronger 
than  perhaps  at  any  period  before  or  since.  Moreover, 
the  whole  commercial  and  social  life  was  being  trans- 
formed in  such  a  manner  as  to  make  explorations  west- 
waril  across  the  Atlantic  in  search  of  Oriental  markets 
almost  inevitable.^ 


'  William  Clarence  Webster,  "  General  History  of  Commerce,"  p.  96. 

'  Cheney,  "European  Background  of  .\merican  History,"  p[).  3S-39  : 
"  .\s  luirope  in  the  tlfteenth  century  became  more  uealthy  .inrj  mure 
familiar  with  the  products  of  the  whole  world,  as  the  nobles  learned  to 


.. '  iC'^nr  i- 


I 


^^m 


coN'i)iTU)\s  Lr:\r)i\(;  to  discovery  5 

'I'lic  (oinmiTc  ial  lifi-  of  F.uropc  in  iIr'  Miildlf  A^cs  was 
l)iiilt  uj)  arouiiil  till'  trade  with  the  Oiiftit.  From  the 
Fa>t  laiiie  spites,  tea,  CotTee,  prei  ious  stones,  rare  lah- 
iii>.  (l\-e>.  perfumes,  druj^'s,  carpets,  and  ru^s,  nearly 
all  luxuries  enjoyed  by  the  rieh  and  the  powerful  alone. 
In  txihan.i,'i  for  these  the  West  sent  woolen  ^'oimIs,  tin, 
(o])per.  lead,  arsenic,  antimony,  and  other  metals,  and 
especially  ^old  and  silver,  of  which  large  amounts  were 
always  (lowing  east  to  meet  the  heavy  "balance  of  trade" 
that  favored  the  Orient.' 

Certain  Mediterranean  cities  became  the  western 
termini  of  the  long  voyage  from  the  Kast,  and  distribut- 
ing points  for  the  goods  to  the  local  trade  centers.  Fore- 
most among  these  cities  were  Venice  and  Genoa. 

The  stream  of  goods  flowing  between  these  cities  and 
the  Orient  passed  through  Asia  Minor  or  down  the  Red 
Sea.  and  throu,.,^h  the  Arabian  Gulf.  During  the  eleventh, 
twelfth,  and  thirteenth  centuries  the  Moslems  were 
moving  north  out  of  Africa  and  gradually  cutting  these 
trade  routes  one  by  one.  When  in  145,^  Constantinople 
fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Mohammedan  Turks,  the  last 
great  route  to  the  Orient  was  closed  to  European  traders.^ 

Europe  did  not  sit  idle  wliile  the  arteries  of  its  com- 
mercial life  were  being  slowly  strangled.     How  to  fmd 


(li-mand  more  luxuries,  and  a  wealthy  merchant  class  prew  up  whi'  h  was 
a!)lc  to  gratify  the  same  tastes  as  the  nobles,  the  demand  of  the  West  ufxin 
tlie  Kast  i)eiame  more  insistent  than  ever.  Therefore,  the  men,  the  na- 
tion, the  j;overnment  that  could  find  a  new  way  to  the  Kast  might  claim 
a  tr.ulc  of  indefinite  extent  and  extreme  profit." 

'  Kiiward  P.  Cheney,  "  Kuropean  Hackground  of  .\mcrican  History," 
pp   o-ic);    Alitys  Schulte,  "C.e>chichte  des  Mittelalterlichtn  Handel  und 

.cir.r:::..      \  ;;i.    i,  pp.  ;;74    ;>75. 

2  Hehnholt,  "History  of  the  \\V-'d,"  Vol.  VII,  p.  8. 


-  rTv>*!!r.VK  t '^' ■  •> 


6  SOCIAL   FORCES  IN   AMERICAN  HISTORY 

or  make  a  trade  route  between  Europe  and  the  Orient 
%vas  ;i  question  that  so  dominated  the  life  of  Europe  during 
this  lime  as  to  be  the  principal  force  in  molding  its  social 
institutions.  Yet  for  almost  three  centuries  there  was 
scarcely  a  :-,uggestion  of  seeking  a  western  route.  It  is 
doubtful  if  geographical  ignorance  was  even  the  prin- 
cii)al  cause  for  the  neglect  of  westward  exploration. 
Knowledge  came  when  it  was  needed,  but  no  such  knowl- 
edge was  wantefl  during  these  centuries.  Such  a  west- 
ward route  would  have  overthrown  existing  trade  rela- 
tions. Those  who  profited  })y  !:uch  relations  were  in 
control  of  society,  and  could  scarcely  be  expected  to 
seek  out  such  a  route.^ 

All  elTorts  were  directed  toward  driving  back  the  Mos- 
lems and  opening  up  the  eastward  route.  In  this  fact 
we  find  at  least  one  reason  for  those  tremendous  move- 
ments of  armed  men,  —  the  Crusades.  The  accepted 
explanation  of  these  expeditions  is  that  they  were  foi  the 
purpose  of  "rescuing  the  holy  sepulchre  from  the  profane 
touch  of  the  infidel."  It  is  at  least  suggestive  that  cru- 
sades were  not  preached  until  trade  routes  were  endan- 
gered, and  that  they  ceased  when  commerce  underwent 
a  transformation  that  rendered  these  particular  trade 
routes  of  less  importance  to  the  ruling  merchant  class. 

It  was  just  these  changes  that  paved  the  way  for  the 
discovery  of  America. 

Oriental  products,  after  their  arrival  in  Europe,  flowed 
along  certain  well-defined  channels.  For  ages  the  goods 
that  arrived  cA  Venice  and  Genoa  had  moved  into  north- 
ern Europe  along  routes  whose  location  had  largely  de- 

'  I);ui.i  Macphorson,  "nistor>-  of  European  Commerce  with  India" 
(I.onilon,   1S12).  iip.   7-8. 


i 


CONDITIONS   LEADING  TO  DISCOVKRY  7 

termined  the  placing  of  population  and  the  existence  of 
many  social  institutions.  One  set  of  routes  led  north- 
ward across  France.  At  certain  intervals  great  fairs  were 
regularly  held.  These  fairs  performed  the  same  distrib- 
uting service  for  the  commerce  of  the  Middle  Ages  that 
is  performed  by  the  great  cities  of  the  present.  They 
were,  in  fact,  temporary  cities,  dissolving  when  their 
annual  function  had  been  performed. 

Another  trunk  of  this  commerce  led  from  the  terminal 
cities  on  the  Mediterranean  over  the  Alps  and  down  the 
Rhine.  Because  this  route  was  the  feeder  of  the  com- 
merce of  all  northwestern  Europe,  the  Rhine  was  sprinkled 
thickly  with  the  castles  of  the  robber  barons.  The  trav- 
eler who  passes  down  the  Rhine  to-day  can  measure  the 
wealth  of  this  commerce  by  the  ruins  of  the  retreats  of 
the  castled  thieves  who  preyed  upon  it. 

Whatever  disturbed  these  trade  routes  and  centers 
would  change  the  whole  social  structure  resting  upon 
them,—  the  merchants  and  the  barons  who  robbed  them, 
the  fairs  and  the  country  dependent  upon  them. 

This  European  trade  system  was  being  revolutionized 
and  transformed  during  the  years  that  the  Moslems 
were  cutting  the  trade  arteries  that  united  it  with  the 
Orient. 

Improvements  in  navigation  and  shipbuilding  had 
made  the  voyage  around  Gibraltar  cheaper  and  safer 
than  the  overland  trip  across  France  and  Germany.  The 
discovery  of  rich  mineral  deposits  in  Germany  and  Eng- 
land, and  the  development  of  the  English  and  Flemish 
woolen  industry  contributed  still  further  to  this  altera- 
tion.^  The  fairs  decayed,  the  castles  on  the  Rhine  grew 
>  Brooks  .\dams,  "The  New  Empire,"  pp.  5^5.v 


i: 


f^M:9^ 


i  y)»j--\  ■-' 


8 


SOCIAL   F()KCi:S   I\   AMERICAN   HISTORY 


less  profitable,  and  a  new  group  of  commercial  cities  grew 
on  the  liallic  and  the  North  seas. 

'I'hcse  cities  formed  a  confederation  known  as  the 
Hanscatic  League.  Lubeck,  Hamburg,  Bremen,  and 
other  important  trading  centers  entered  into  this  League. 
and  it  grew  in  power  until  it  possessed  its  own  navy. 
enacted  its  own  laws  governing  trade  relations,  made 
treaties,  and  had  many  of  the  attributes  of  a  strong  nation. 
The  very  existence  of  such  a  powerful  federation  com- 
posed of  mercantile  cities  is  significant  of  the  dominant 
position  of  commerce  during  this  period. 

The  Hanscatic  League  soon  entered  into  other  fields 
of  commerce  than  those  depending  upon  the  Oriental 
goods  brought  through  the  Straits  of  Gibraltar.  Its 
merchants  not  only  built  up  an  extensive  local  trade 
within  Europe,  but,  more  significant  still  in  connection 
with  the  discovery  of  America,  they  were  developing  a 
caravan  trade  direct  with  the  Orient  by  way  of  an  over- 
land route  through  Russia  and  China. 

The  trade  of  the  Hanscatic  League  and  of  England, 
Holland,  and  western  Europe  in  general  was  essentially 
an  ocean  trade,  developing  shi()building,  training  sailors, 
and  offering  prizes  to  navigators.  E.xtraordinary  eiTorts 
were  made  to  increase  the  si/.e  of  ships.  Henry  V^  of 
England  experimented  in  the  building  of  ships  that  would 
have  been  considered  large  at  the  beginning  of  the  nine- 
teenth century.  Boats  of  qoo  tons  burden  were  built  at 
the  Southampton  docks  in  144Q.' 

A  summary  of  the  situation  at  the  close  of  the  fifteenth 
century  will  show  a  combinatit)n  of  forces  making  for 

'  Cunningham,  •'Growth  of  Enghsh  Industry  and  Commerce,"  Vol.  I, 
P-4I3 


CONDITIONS   LKADINO   TO   DISCOVERY 


rliscovery  and  exploration.  The  merchants  were  the 
ruling  class  in  society.  Commerce  was  built  around  the 
Oriental  trade.  The  principal  routes  of  this  trade  were 
closed.  Within  Europe  trade  centers  and  routes  had 
shifted  to  the  Atlantic  coast.  In  so  shifting  there  had 
come  a  development  of  navigation  and  shipbuilding 
techni(iue  such  as  was  essential  to  any  extensive  voyage 
of  discovery.  Commercial  Europe,  after  facing  for  cen- 
turies toward  the  East  with  its  outposts  on  the  Medi- 
terranean, was  now  looking  out  across  the  Atlantic  from 
the  shore  of  western  Europe. 

Tin's  commercial  world  was  devoting  all  its  energies 
to  ll  ■  search  for  a  route  to  Asia,  and  there  was  a  general 
tn.  .jncy  to  seek  this  via  the  Atlantic.  Portugal  was 
already  creeping  around  Africa.  In  1445  Dinnis  Diaz 
had  sailed  beyond  Cape  Verde,  the  uttermost  point  of  the 
great  westward  bend  of  the  African  continent.  Further 
progress  would  have  been  rapid  had  not  a  new  and 
hitherto  unexpected  obstacle  developed.  The  explorers 
had  reached  the  source  of  slave-supply  and  found  this 
trade  more  profitable  than  hunting  for  trade  routes  to 

India. 

"Hence  one  expedition  after  another  sent  out  for  pur- 
po>es  of  discovery,  returned,  bringing  tales  of  failure 
to  reach  further  points  on  the  coast,  but  laden  with  human 
booty  to  be  sold.  .  .  .  Only  the  most  vigorous  pressure, 
exercised  on  the  choicest  spirits  among  the  Portuguese 
cai^tains,  served  to  carry  discoveries  further."  ' 

Th-se  navigators  had  gone  far  enough,  however,  to 
sati>ly  the  rulers  of  Portugal  that  India  could  be  reached 

•  K.  P.  Cheney,  "Kuropean  Backfiround  of  .\merican  History," 
pp.  66-70;   "Cambridge  Modern  History,"  Vo'.  I,  pp.  ~-i(>- 


T^mm 


lO 


SOCIAL  rORCKS  OF  AMKRICAX  iii>r()ky 


around  Africa,  and  they  were  consequently  indifTerent 
to  the  plea  of  Columbus.'  The  merchants  of  the  north- 
ern cities  hoped  much  from  the  routes  which  they  could 
control  throuf^h  Russia  and  Siberia,  or  alon;^  the  Black 
Sea  to  China,  and  were  likewise  indifferent  to  westward 
sailing  explorations.  The  Italian  merchants  were  trying 
to  bargain  with  the  Moslem  whom  the  Crusades  hafl  been 
unable  to  crush.  A  western  route  would  only  contribute 
to  their  decline,  and  Columbus  found  no  favor  for  his 
plan  in  his  native  Genoa. 

There  were  three  commercial  nations  on  the  Atlantic 
that  would  profit  directly  by  a  western  route.  Each 
could  hope  to  control  such  a  route,  and  none  saw  any 
possibility  of  similar  advantages  in  any  other  route. 
These  were  England.  Spain,  and  France.  Columbus 
made  simultaneous  application  to  the  first  two.  Eng- 
land was  suspicious  of  his  Sjjanish  affiliations,  had  plenty 
of  navigators  who  were  beginning  explorations,  and 
therefore  rejected  his  offer,  and  he  sailed  under  a  Spanish 
flag. 

It  was  an  "Age  of  Discovery."  Explorers  were  push- 
ing out  in  all  directions.  Many  had  already  suggested 
that  the  road  to  India  lay  to  the  west.  Contrary  to 
the  popularly  accepted  legends  that  have  become  em- 
balmed in  textbooks,  the  rotundity  of  the  earth  was  quite 
generally  accepted  in  scientific  circles. 

>  "Cambridpc  Modern  Histon,-,"  \'ol.  I,  p.  21  :  "The  circumnaviga- 
tinn  of  .\friia  was  nearly  accomplished  ;  of  this  route  to  the  wealthy  Fast 
the  rortUKuese  would  enjoy  a  practical  monopoly,  and  it  could  be  elTec- 
tively  defended.  .  .  .  I-Acn  if  the  westward  passage  were  successfully 
accomi)lished,  it  was  manifest  that  Portugal  would  he  unable  to  mono[K>- 
lize  it,  and  that  discovery  must  ultimately  inure  for  the  benetit  of  the 

rv,.l,,.^.,    .,..,,..,.,,.,     mUiOrt-vt    TfCzTtCr  :i    i!.Ul'^*i^*C. 


^I^^m:" 


CONUITIOXS    LEADING  TO    DISCOVI.RY 


II 


The  discovery  of  America  by  Columbus  was  but  the 
inevitable  resultant  of  the  operation  of  forces  that  wire 
bound  to  send  some  one  across  the  Atlantic  at  about  the 
close  of  the  fifteenth  century. 


! 


CHAPTER    II 


CAUSES    OF    COLOXIZATION 


Tiir:  movement  of  the  peoples  of  Europe  to  the  Xew 
World  \v  ,  but  a  [)art  of  the  strange  age-long  migration 
of  the  race  toward  the  setting  sun.  Great  masses  of 
people,  such  as  came  to  America  in  colonial  times,  do 
not  move  without  some  deep,  underlying  cause.  Men 
and  women  do  not  leave  their  homes  and  friends  and 
brave  ilw  dangers  of  such  an  ocean  voyage  as  was  required 
to  reach  America  before  the  age  of  steam  without  some 
strong.  comjK'lling  force. 

The  greatest  admirer  of  the  Xew  World  could  hardly 
claim  that  it  possessed  any  powerful  attractions  at  this 
time.  The  best  that  it  could  offer  to  the  h:st  comers 
was  a  chance  to  struggle  with  the  forces  of  nature  in 
a  state  of  society  but  little  removed  from  savagery.  Yet 
hundreds  of  thousands  of  people  did  come  to  America 
during  the  three  centuries  after  its  discovery. 

If  there  were  no  i)owerful  attractions  drawing  them  on, 
the  cause  of  their  migration  must  be  sought  in  the  land 
from  which  they  came. 

It  was  a  time  of  social  upheaval  and  revolution  in 
Europe.  The  merchant  class  was  ruling.  It  was  the 
hrst  division  of  the  great  capitalist  army,  —  the  advance 
guard,  whose  work  it  was  to  explore  the  world  and  clear 
the  way  for  the  army  of  occupation,  —  the  industrial 
capitalist. 


CAUSnS   OF   COLONIZATION 


13 


riic  forces  of  feudalism  were  not  yet  completely  con- 
quered, and  the  new  class  was  compelled  constantly  to 
ti^lit  to  hold  its  position  and  j^iin  greater  power.  It  was 
a  time  when  nations  and  religions  were  being  born,  and 
when  in  all  helds  of  social  life  mighty  forces  were  strug- 
gling for  the  mastery. 

As  fast  as  the  merchant  or  the  manufacturing  class 
attained  to  power,  its  members  set  about  divorcing  the 
former  serfs  and  peasants  from  the  soil,  and  dissolving 
all  (iM  feudal  relations,  in  order  that  the  workers  might 
be  "free"  to  hunt  for  employers.  So  it  was  that  in 
nearl\-  all  the  leading  I-Airopean  nations  the  people  were 
bring  driven  out  of  their  ancient  homes. 

In  llngland,  for  example,  this  was  a  time  of  great  growth 
in  the  woolen  industry.  Tenants  were  being  driven  o(T 
the  (.Id  estates  that  great  sheep  pastures  might  be  created. 
Seldom  has  this  process  been  more  vividly  depicted  than 
in  a  famous  extract  from  the  "Utopia"  of  Sir  Thomas 
More.  This  was  written  in  1615,  and  the  author  makes 
one  of  his  characters  say  concerning  the  condition  in 
contemporary  England :  — 

"\'()ur  sheep,  which  are  naturally  mild  and  easily  kept 
in  order,  may  be  said  now  to  devour  men  and  unpeople, 
nut  only  villages,  but  towns,  for,  wherever  it  is  found 
that  the  shi^ep  of  any  soil  yield  a  softer  and  richer  wool 
than  ordinary  there  the  nobility  and  gentry,  and  even 
those  holy  men,  the  abbots,  not  contented  with  the  old 
rents  which  their  farms  yielded,  nor  thinking  it  enough 
that  they,  living  at  their  ease,  do  no  good  to  the  public, 
resolve  to  do  it  hurt  instead  of  good.  They  stop  the 
course  of  agriculture,  destroying  houses  and  towns,  re- 
serving only  trie  churches,  and  inclosed  grounds  ti^at  t:-.ey 


JMMJm:.^^^'^ 


mmm::^ 


►w.  ^  ^' 


14 


SOCIAL    FORCF.S    IX   AMICRIC.W    HISTORY 


may  lodge  their  sheep  in  them.  As  if  forests  and  parks 
had  swallowed  up  too  little  of  the  land,  those  worthy 
countrymen  turn  the  best  inhabited  places  into  solitudes; 
for  when  an  insatiable  wretch,  who  is  a  plague  to  his  coun- 
try, resolves  to  inclose  many  thousands  of  acres  of  land, 
the  owners,  as  well  as  tenants,  are  turned  out  of  their 
possessions,  by  tricks,  or  by  main  force,  or,  being  wearied 
out  with  ill-usage,  they  are  forced  to  sell  them.  By 
which  means  those  miserable  people,  both  men  and 
women,  m.irried  and  unmarried,  okl  and  young,  with 
their  poor  but  numerous  families  (since  country  business 
refiuires  many  hands\  are  all  forced  to  change  their  seats, 
not  knowing  whither  to  go  ;  and  they  must  sell  almost  for 
nothing  their  household  siuff,  which  couid  not  bring  them 
much  money,  even  though  they  might  stay  for  a  buyer." 
All  Europe  \vi. ,  in  a  turmoil.  The  Hundred  Years' 
War  had  jusi  ceased  when  Columbus  discovered  America. 
Within  the  next  three  centuries  nearly  every  nation  of 
Europe  was  to  be  engaged  in  armed  contlict,  and  for  much 
of  that  time  war  was  practically  epidemic  on  the  conti- 
nent of  Europe.  Most  of  these  wars  were  waged  nomi- 
nally around  questions  of  religion.  This  was  simply 
because  the  industrial  revolution,  which  placed  the  capi- 
talist class  in  power,  necessarily  had  its  religious  ex- 
pression. The  Reformation,  with  its  individualism  in 
theology,  was  as  perfect  a  reflex  of  capitalism  as  "free 
competition"  and  laissez  fairc  in  economics.  "Every 
one  for  himself  and  the  devil  take  the  hindmost"  was 
the  motto  in  industry,  economics,  religion,  and  politics, 
and  it  is  noteworthy  that  the  best  authorities  in  each  of 
these  fields  agreed  that  the  majority  of  mankind  is  con- 
demned to  perdition. 


wjmm.^.^m^mmims^i 


C.\L-Si:S   OF   COLONIZATION  1$ 

Nowhere  did  these  religious  wars  rape  with  such  fury 
,/in  Ckrmanv,  and  it  was  from  the  locality  in  which  the 
;.hlin.'  was  most  destructive  that  the  largest  number 
;:M;ian  endgrant.  came  to  the  New  World.      Ihe 

.re  a  and  fertile  Rhine  Valley,  once  the  mam  h.ghvv;iy 
:,f  commerce  from  the  Mediterranean  to  northern  Lu- 
r.„,c  and  therefore  the  be>t  hunting  ground  for  the  robber 
,,  ,n,n..  was  now  the  seat  of  war  after  war.  The  hr..t  o 
tlu^e  was  the  Thirty  Years'  War,  ended  by  the  peace  of 
We.tphalia  in  1O49.  Historians  vie  with  one  another 
i,  .h.ribing  the  horrible  devastation  of  this  conllict 
upon   the   locality   in   which   it   was   waged,     bays  one 

'' '••  \c,'i  onlv  .vere  horses  and  cattle  carried  away  by  the 
various  armies  which  shifte.l  back  and  forth  over  the 
l,n.th  and  breadth  of  the  land;    not  only  were  houses, 
b.rn.    and  even  crops  burned;    but  the  master  of  the 
iu.u.e\vas  frequently  subjected  to  hendish  tortures    m 
order  that  he  might  thus  be  forced  to  discover  the  hidmg 
place  of  his  gold;    or,  as  often  happened,  as  a  pumsh- 
L,,U  for  having  nothing  to  give.     At  the  approach  of  a 
ho^iile  armv  the  whole  village  would  take  to  flight,  and 
,vou!d  live  for  weeks  in  the  midst  of  forests  and  marshes 
or  in  caves.     The  enemy  having  departed,  the  wretched 
survivors  would  return  to  their  ruined  homes  and  carry 
on  a  painful  existence  with  the  few  remams  of   their 
fornur  property,  until  they  were  forced  to  fly  again  by 

new  invasions. 

,  .  "  ■  ' 

"The  vears  i6r.  and  1636  mark  the  period  of  the  most 

terrible   miserv.  "^In   the  years   1636-1638   famine   and 

'_ I.)  ..,  fV,o  cnt'tWintT.     The  people  tried 


i6 


SOCIAL    FOKLLS    IN    A.MI.KICAX    HISTORY 


to  .Miti>l"v  luinf;cr  with  roots,  ^rass,  and  leaves;  even 
taniiiljali^in  became  more  <»r  K>>  t"ie(|Lient.  The  ^'allows 
and  the  graveyards  had  to  be  guarded;  the  bodies  of 
children  wire  ncjt  sate  I'roni  their  mothers.  So  j^reat  was 
the  destruction  th;'.t  wiiere  once  were  llouri.ihini,'  farms 
and  vineyards,  now  whole  bands  of  wohes  roameil  un- 
molested." ' 

Even  yet  the  cup  of  misery  of  this  ill-fated  land  was  not 
filled.  The  i)eace  signed  at  Westphalia  in  1O49  was 
quickly  broken  so  far  as  the  Palatinate  was  concerned. 
In  1674  another  war  broke  out  between  France  and  Hol- 
land, that  lasted  with  but  few  interruptions  and  with 
slight  changes  of  combatants  for  several  years  more. 
Finally,  in  1OS9  the  French  determined  completely  to 
depoinilate  this  country.  The  result  has  been  stated  in 
one  of  Macaul;  ,  's  striking  paragraphs  :  — 

"The  commander  announced  to  near  half  a  million 
human  beings  that  he  granted  them  three  days  of  grace, 
and  that  within  that  time  they  must  shift  for  themselves. 
Soon  the  roads  and  fields,  which  then  lay  deep  in  snow, 
were  blackened  by  innumerable  multitudes  of  men, 
women,  and  children  flying  from  their  homes.  .  .  .  The 
flames  went  up  from  every  market  place,  every  parish 
church,  every  country  scat,  within  the  devoted  i)rovince. 
The  fields  where  the  corn  had  been  sowed  were  plowed 
up.     The  orchards  were  cut  down." 

These  i)oor  hunted  creatures  fled  by  tens  of  thousands 
to  the  valleys  and  broad  fields  of  Pennsylvania,  where 
they  have  pre-^erved  their  language,  customs,  religion, 
and  traditions  even  to  the  present  day,  presenting  the 

'  O-i.ir  Kiilins,  "Tlic  German  and  Swiss  Settlements  of  Colonial 
I'enn^}  Uania,"  pp.  j-9. 


CAUSi:S  OF   COLONIZATION 


17 


i 


strange  paradox  of  the  oldest  "Americans"  speaking  a 
"foreign"  tongue.  They  lied  down  the  Rhine,  erowdeii 
inio  Ani>ter(lam,  where  they  bteanic  the  victims  of  a 
horde  of  hyena-like  shipi)ing  agents,  who  plundered  them 
of  tlu'ir  last  coin,  then  shipped  them  upon  overcrowded 
and  un>eaworthy  ships,  with  such  accommodations  that 
soinelinies  half  of  them  died  ui)on  the  pas>age,  and  the 
remainder  wire  landed  in  America,  so  indebted  to  the 
ship's  otTicers  that  they  were  sold  into  temporary  slav- 
ery to  pay  their  passage.' 

Throughout  this  period,  whichever  of  the  warring  re- 
ligious sects  gained  control  of  any  government  promptly 
u>c(l  its  j)ower  to  ''stamp  out  the  heresy"  of  its  com- 
petitors. So  there  was  never  a  lack  of  religious  refugees 
seeking  an  asylum  in  America,  although  the  number  of 
these  has  been  vastly  exaggerated,  since  the  love  of  re- 
ligious freedom  is  ordinarily  looked  upon  as  a  much 
higher  motive  for  emigration  than  economic  necessity. 
It  is  almost  needless  to  say  that  each  little  flock  of  refu- 
gees was  no  sooner  safely  settled  in  the  New  World  than 
it  proceeded  to  discover  new  heretics  among  its  t)wn 
members,  who  were  piously  driven  into  the  surrounding 
wilderness. 

During  the  eighteenth  century  another  important 
element  was  added  to  the  stream  of  immigration.  This 
time  it  came  from  Ireland  and  was  composed  of  that  body 
that  was  to  play  such  an  important  part  in  certain  phases 

'  I-,.r  details  of  the^e  matters,  sec  Fr.ink  R.  DifTcndcrfer,  "The  Ger- 
man Immisiralion  into  Pennsylvania  thruu«h  the  Port  of  Phila(leli>hia 
from  1700-1775,"  in  Part  VII  of  the  "Narrative  and  Critiail  Hi>l()ry  of 
Pennsvlvania " ;  also  same  author,  "The  Redemptioners  in  Pennsyl- 
vania," in  Clerman  Society  Publications,  Vol.  X  ;  Geiser,  "  Redemptioners 

111  i  Vnii:^)  i  V  aiiia." 
C 


i8 


S(K  lAI.    |(H<(  IS    !N-    AMLklCA.N    HISTOKV 


?*>.-.- 


12    'a-- >!»"•-- 


of  Anuriiaii  history,  the  S( otch-Irish.  An  t-xplanation 
ol  thi>  nioNcnunt  is  ((Hilaiiud  in  the  following'  extract 
fnitn  (■ain|)l)tirs  work  on  '•  TIk-  Puritan  in  Holland, 
Kn^'land,  and  America"  (Vol.  II.  ji.  427):  — 

"In  lOyS,  upon  th.c  demand  of  the  Kn^dish  manufac- 
turers, the  woolen  industry  of  Ireland  was  utterly  des- 
troyed. It  wai  claimed  that  labor  was  cheaper  there 
than  in  Kn^dand.  and  that,  therefore,  the  i)roduct  could 
he  sold  at  a  lower  price.  This  was  not  to  be  endured. 
The  interference  of  Parliament  was  invoked,  and  by  a 
series  of  repressive  acts,  the  Iri,-,h  looms  were  closed.  As 
one  result  of  I  his  le^n'slation  twenty  thousand  of  the 
Protestant  artisans  of  Ulster,  deprived  of  employment, 
left  Irelan<l  for  .\merica,  carrying;  with  them  the  remem- 
brance of  how  English  faith,  jjlighted  to  their  forefathers, 
had  been  broken  under  the  intluence  of  English  greed." 

The  next  step  was  the  enactment  by  Queen  Anne's 
parliament  of  laws  persecuting  the  Scotch-Irish  for  their 
religious  belief,  and  this  was  followed  by  the  establish- 
ment of  the  "rack-renting"  system,  under  which  the 
native  Irish,  with  a  lower  standard  of  living,  'ver  nablcd 
to  underbid  the  former  tenants.  Add  to  this  a  famine 
in  1740.  and  it  is  no  wonder  that  this  "was  by  far  the 
largest  contribution  of  any  race  to  the  population  of 
America  during  the  eighteenth  century."  ^ 

It  is  the  same  story  everywhere.  It  was  not  because 
America  drew  them  on,  but  because  Europe  drove  them 
out.  that  the  colonists  came  to  .\merica. 

Thousands  of  the  poorer  colonists  sold  themselves  foi 
a  series  of  years  as  slaves  in  order  to  pay  the  passage 
money  that  had  been  advanced  by  the  shipowners.     In 


Joi.u  k.  C.iiiimuii>,  "  Kates  ami  Immi^raius  in  America,"  pp.  34-3O 


CAUSKs  or  coi.oM/.vrioN' 


»9 


? 


f;i(  t.  John  R.  Commons  estimates  that  probably  one  half 
of  aU  the  immi;,'rants  of  the  colonial  perio*!  landed  as 
"indinlurid  >ervants." 

There  Wire  tiiree  classes  (^  "whitL  slaves"  in  colonial 
tinu>.  Tlie  larmier  class,  to  which  referen'.e  lias  just  been 
tuadi',  were  tho>e  who  a;,'reed  with  the  masters  of  some 
vi—-cl  that  ill  return  for  a  passage  to  the  Xew  World  the 
>hipiiwiur  >iiou!d  have  the  ri^'ht  to  sell  the  passenger 
into  >er\ituile  for  a  detinite  number  of  years.  In  the 
majority  of  ia>es  this  sale  was  made  at  the  wharf,  and 
tile  news])ai)iTs  of  the  time  regularly  contain  advertise- 
nuiits  of  the  arrival  of  ships  with  "indentured  servants" 
to  be  ~-c>i(l.  In  (ase  no  buyers  came  to  the  ship  the  pas- 
seiiL;er>  were  >old  to  agents,  who  chained  them  together 
and  peddled  them  through  the  towns  and  villages. 

.Another  large  class  of  slaves  was  made  up  of  criminals, 
sent  here  largely  from  England,  and  sold  to  the  colonists 
for  a  term  of  years. 

A>  the  rai>ing  of  cotton  and  tobacco  and  some  other 
staph'  crojjs  became  more  protitable,  and  the  close  vicin- 
ity of  the  forest  with  free  land  made  it  ditlicult  to  keep 
employees  at  the  beggarl}  wages  \v!ii  h  prevailed,  the 
(leniand  for  workmen  became  so  great  that  a  regular 
trade  in  the  stealing  of  i)ersons  for  colonial  slavery  sprung 
up  in  Mngland.  So  prevalent  did  this  practice  become 
that  it  added  a  new  phrase  to  the  language.  Those  who 
stole  these  children  for  export  to  America  were  called 
''spirits."  anil  from  this  camethephrase  to  "spirit  away": 

"Children  and  adults  alike  were  lured  or  forced  upon 
vessels  in  the  harbor,  or  carried  to  the  numerous  cook- 
shops  in  tlie  neighborhood  of  the  wharves  in  the  principal 
seajHjrts,  and  iit-rc  they  were  kept  m  close  coniiriernent 


I 


^^■1 


20 


SOCIAL    roRCKS    IN    AMKKK  AN    HISTORY 


until  sold  to  nuTciiants  or  masters  of  ships  which  were 
about  to  sail  tor  the  colonies.  As  a  result  of  this  si)iriting 
away,  frauils  becanu-  so  conunon,  that  in  1^(4  the  Com- 
mittee for  Forei^ni  Plantations  decided  to  interfere.  .  .  . 
A  cumniiltee  was  appointed  whose  ciuty  it  was  to  re.gister 
the  names  and  ages  of  all  who  wished  to  emigrate  to 
America.  Hut  this  did  not  put  a  stop  to  the  practice. 
Ten  years  after  this  act  became  a  law,  it  was  stated  that 
10.000  persons  were  annually  si)irited  away  from  Eng- 
land by  kidnapj)ers." 

Kinally  more  than  :oo,ooo  negro  skives  were  stolen  from 
thrir  homes  in  Africa  by  Dutch  or  Xew  England  traders 
and  sold  to  tne  planters  of  the  Southern  colonies.  His- 
torians have  told  us  much  of  the  discomforts  of  the  voy- 
agers on  the  MayJJincrr.  but  the>-  have  had  little  to  say 
of  the  horrors  endured  by  the  miserable  fugitives  from 
the  Palatinate,  and  still  less  of  the  terrible  sufferings  in- 
flicted upon  the  helple.vs  children  stolen  from  their  homes 
in  London  to  become  the  slaves  of  American  planters 
and  farmers. 


I 


CHAPTER    III 


WHAT   THE    COLONISTS    FOUND   IN   AMERICA 


Social  institutions  are  born  of  two  elements,  —  the 
land  and  the  people.  In  the  childhood  of  society  these 
two  elements  in  action  and  reaction  are  almost  the  only 
factors  to  l)e  considered.  Later  the  inertia  of  social 
iii-titutions  may  bect)me  a  far  more  powerful  factor  in 
M.cial  ev)lution  than  either  of  the  i)rimary  factors.'  We 
ha\  e  seen  something  of  the  character  of  those  who  peopled 
till-  continent.  We  have  learned  a  little  of  the  society 
frcim  which  they  came,  and  of  the  forces  that  sent  them 
aiTo--^  the  (xean.  They  were  now  to  build  up  a  society 
in  a  new  world.  As  materials  to  this  end  they  brought 
with  them  a  vast  store  of  things  that  mankind  had  been 
countless  ages  in  accjuiring:  the  knowledge  of  reading, 
and  priming  and  gunpowder,  of  making  tools  of  iron  and 
steel,  of  s])inning  and  weaving  and  making  of  clothing. 
social  and  governmental  institutions,  churches,  laws, 
creeds,  beliefs,  prejudices,  superstitions.  All  these  things, 
developed  in  the  complex  civilization  of  Europe,  were 
now  transjilanted  to  a  world  where  they  had  hitherto 
been  unknown. 

It  was  as  if  some  giant  hand  had  gathered  a  multitude 
of  seeds  of  all  kinds  and  manner  of  plants  from  all  the 
ends  of  the  earth  and  had  flung  them  at  random  upon  the 

'  J.  Tau!  (ioode,  "  I'hc  Hiiman  Rp^^iionse  to  the  Physical  Environ- 
naiu,"  in  the  Jouniai  of  utography,  sul.  Ill,  No.  /. 

.21 


22 


^(»(•I.\L    FORCKS    IX    AMF.RICAX   HISTORY 


Anuriiaii  Iiills  and  plains.  Sumc  would  never  sprout; 
others  would  die  with  the  rir>t  frost,  or  he  shrivi'led  with 
o\i  rnuich  heal.  Some  would  be  drowned  with  to<<  much 
rain,  while  others  would  hick  the  trojiical  downpour 
essential  to  life.  Some  would  tlnd  the  new  conditions  .so 
e.xceplionably  favorable  that  they  would  f^'row  to  ^iant 
weeds,  choking'  out  (jther  plants  of  greater  inlrin>ic  value. 

Let  us  look  u])on  the  land  where  this  plentiful  load  of 
old  achie\ements,  btliefs,  and  in.^iitutions  are  to  be 
thrown,  that  we  may  see  which  are  most  suited  to  sur- 
vive and  tlourish,  anrl  where  each  kind  may  reach  its 
highest  development. 

The  .\tlantic  coast  is  a  gooil  colonial  seed  bed.  Con- 
trast its  abundant  harbors,  long  tidal  rivers,  and  general 
open  appearance  with  the  snK)oth.  closed  wall  of  the 
I'acil'ic  coast.  Here  is  room  for  many  communities  to 
grow  up  indej)endent  of  one  anotlier.  It  is  almost  an 
axiom  of  history  that  peninsulas  form  a  sort  of  social 
hotbeds  in  which  nations  grow  rai)idly  to  a  high  stage  of 
maturity.  A  handful  v\  oU)nists  could  scarcely  have 
been  thrown  at  any  s[)ot  from  Maine  to  Georgia  without 
finding  a  fav(.)rablc  opening  in  which  to  lodge  and  sprout 
and  grow. 

In  the  days  when  the  colonists  came  to  America,  and, 
indeed,  in  all  the  years  before  that  time,  rivers  were  the 
jirincipal  means  of  communication,  even  in  old  countries, 
w'liile  in  new  countries  they  were  almost  the  only  high- 
ways of  commerce  and  travel.  The  region  in  which  the 
lirst  American  colonies  were  located  was  amply  provided 
with  these  natural  highways.  Abundant  navigable  rivers 
afforded  access  far  into  the  interior.     Only  in  New  Eng- 

i,:::\l     \^»;r-     iii^.  :.:::    iiitC         :r'J    vi"wC    vO    Liiv   Ow^lil    *iz;    tO   ^i  v  i. 


1 


WHAT   Tin:   COLONISTS    FOCXn    IN*   AMKRICA 


3 


ri-e  to  the  short  swift  rivers  which  confine  settlement  to  the 
(udA  and  sujiply  power  to  turn  the  wluels  o\  industry. 

An  examin;  'on  of  these  rivers  will  toll  us  much  of  the 
history  of  the  region  they  drain.  The  broad  deep  Ilud- 
-on  and  Suscjuehanna  tapjied  country  rich  in  fur  in  the 
beginning,  which  was  later  to  become  a  bountiful  farming 
region.  These  facts  suggest  that  some  day  an  Astor 
should  rise  and  rule  at  the  mouth  of  one  of  these  rivers 
and  that  both  should  become  the  scat  of  great  commercial 
cities.  The  Rappahannock  and  the  James  ebbed  and 
tlowed  with  the  ticL-  for  many  miles  through  rich  alluvial 
silt,  which  was  to  be  marked  off  into  broad  plantations, 
lirst  for  tobacco  and  later  for  cotton.  Ocean  vessels  could 
sail  up  tliese  tidewater  streams  to  the  wharves  of  the 
rich  planters,  who  ruled  over  armies  of  chattel  slaves 
and  sold  their  products  directly  in  foreign  markets. 

When  society  was  so  closely  connected  with  the  tilling 
of  the  soil,  the  character  of  that  element  played  an  im 
portant  part  in  determining  social  evolution.  The  gla- 
ciated clay  of  New  Entdand  with  its  coating  of  ice- 
brought  bowlders  was  dilTicult  of  cultivation  but  slow 
of  e.xliaustion.  It  invited  small  permanent  farms,  with 
such  small  profits  as  to  require  an  auxiliary  industry  like 
n>hing,  hunting,  or  trading  to  maintain  a  living.  The 
iilluvial  silt  of  the  South  was  the  opposite  in  its  charac- 
teristics. Easy  of  conquest  in  the  beginning,  it  invited 
the  cultivation  of  staple  crops  with  high  profits  which 
(|uickly  exhausted  the  soil,  compelling  continuous  change 
of  location.  Slavery  was  almost  as  impossible  under  the 
ft)rmer  conditions  as  it  was  inevitable  under  the  latter. 

Climate  plays  its  part  in  deciding  historical  events. 
It  would  be  as  hard  to  imagine  the  individualistic,  eiier- 


so(  lAi.  roRcr.s  i\  americ.w  history 


gclic.  dogmatic  Puritan  of  Xcw  England  preaching, 
lighting,  trading  beneath  the  torrid  sun  of  the  C.'  "  las, 
,is  to  thinl<  of  the  fox-hunting,  gambling,  sla  I'Ut 
building  his  plantation  mansion  with  its  broad  verandas 
on  the  bleak  New  England  hills. 

While  the  various  peninsulas  and  river  sy>tems  into 
which  the  Atlantic  coast  is  divided  favored  a  high  de- 
velopment of  individual  colonies,  and  tended  to  produce 
and  emphasize  local  peculiar*ies,  the  ocean  which  con- 
nected all  the  colonics  constituted  a  broad  atid  ever  open 
highway  that  bound  them  together.  What.soevcr  in- 
terests like  commerce  and  fishing  required  the  use  of  this 
common  means  of  transportation  tended  to  unite  tlie 
\arious  cc-Ionies,  and  we  shall  lind  these  interests  pkiying 
a  prominent  i)art  in  the  formation  of  a  united  nation. 
As  each  coU)ny  crept  back  from  the  ocean  and  away 
from  the  river,  its  peoples  came  into  contact  with  those 
of  its  neighbors.  At  the  headwaters  of  the  rivers  there 
would  soon  arise  a  body  of  people  more  closely  united  to 
each  other  than  to  any  single  colony.  This  process  a  as 
hastened  by  the  fact  that  there  extended  along  the  full 
length  of  the  settlements  a  broad  mountain  range  that 
set  a  limit  to  western  expansion  during  most  of  the  colo- 
nial period.  Once  the  Indians  had  been  driven  beyond 
the  Appalachians,  these  mountain  ranges  formed  a  pro- 
tecting barrier  for  the  colonies  against  further  attacks. 
This  protecting  barrier  to  expansion  fostered  colonial 
solidarity.  It  hastened  the  evolution  of  society  to  that 
l)artially  self-supporting  stage,  which  rendered  possible 
the  common  action  that  resulted  in  political  independence 
and  national  existence.  To  understand  what  the  absence 
of  such  a  limiting  and  protecting  barrier  might  have 


WllVr    IIIF.    COI.ONISTS    FOUND    IN    AMF.RK'A         :5 

„,  .tnt,  il  i>  onlv  nccosary  to  -lance  at  the  I-rench  spread- 
ing over  all  C^n  la  and  the  .Mis>issippi  Valley,  forming 
„,^politiail  ur-ani/alions.  and  establishing  no  social  or 
political  unity  between  their  widely  scattere.l  settlements. 
Ill  the  rir>t  >tage>  of  industrial  evolution  only  the  "ex- 
tractive indu>trie>"  are  developed.  These  are  the  in- 
duct rie>  that  e.xtract  raw  material  directly  from  the  earth. 
a.  contrasted  with  those  that  work  up  such  raw  material 
int..  th.e  tini.shed  products  used  by  a  more  complex  civili- 
/,ati..n.  In  any  such  industrial  stage  the  social  organiza- 
tion will  dei-end  quite  largely  upon  the  nature  of  the  raw 
materials  to  be  "e.xtracted." 

Oft  the  coast  of  New  England  lay  the  Xewfoundland 
Hanks,  the  richest  ti,4ung  grounds  in  the  world.  From 
Cape  Cod  to  the  .\rctics  there  stretched  .away  the  "gieen 
I.astures"'  of  the  whale.  These  two  facts  determined 
pulitical  and  military  relations,  affected  trcaties.^  rc- 
pcatedlv  threatened  war,  determined  colonial  and  national 
I,  <.M>lati()n  for  more  than  three  centuries,  and  set  in  motion 
strean;>  of  intluence  that  even  to-day  mightily  affect  the 
current  of  industrial  and  social  life. 

The  .\tlantic  coast  plain,  the  Appalachians,  and  the 
whole  ea>tern  bank  of  the  Mississippi  Valley  were  cov- 
ered with  a  dense  growth  of  forest.  It  is  almost  impos- 
sible to  exaggerate  the  influence  which  this  fact  played 
in  colonial  history.  It  was  the  pine  forests  of  New  Eng- 
land, in  combination  with  the  near-by  fishing  grounds, 
that  laid  the  foundati.m  for  the  great  commercial  life 
..I  that  section.  Although  the  choicest  trees  were  marked 
with  the  "broad  arrow"  of  the  king  to  indicate  that  they 
were  to  be  cut  only  in  order  to  be  shipped  to  England  for 
use  in  the  royal  navy,  yet  the  colonists  were  seldom 


26 


SOCIAL    F()k(i:s    I.\-    A.MI-.RIC.W    IlIMoRV 


troubled  with  an  oviTly  tender  k-j^iil  conscience,  and  many 
a  "broad  arrow"  was  removed  and  the  tree  which  it 
marked  converted  into  masts  for  some  New  Knf,'land 
merchantman. 

I  he  forest  was  at  once  an  obstacle  to  settlement  and 
cultivation,  a  shelter  for  the  Indian,  the  home  of  fur- 
bearin.L;  and  meat-carrying'  animal-,  and  a  re,i,nilator  of 
climate  and  How  of  water.  Just  how  jrreat  a  part  the 
forest  has  played  in  American  history  w  are  only  be- 
Kinninj,'  to  api)reciate  when  it  has  almost  disappeared. 

Hunting,  both  for  food  and  furs;  lumberin,-,';  ship- 
building; and  the  manufacture  of  such  diverse  products 
as  turpentine,  charcoal,  and  pearlash;  the  blockhouse 
for  defense,  and  the  log  cabin  for  shelter,  -  all  these 
various  and  most  charac  teristic  features  of  American 
life  owe  their  existence  to  this  great  forest  belt. 

To  follow  but  one  of  those  features,  and  that  not  the 
most  important,  but  a  little  way  along  its  ramifications: 
The  woods  teemed  with  animals,  large  and  small,  whose 
furry  coxerings  were  coveted  by  man  —  or  woman.     In 
pursuit  of  this  fur  men  explored  rivers,  founded  cities, 
cut  the  trails  through  the  forest  that  marked  the  lines  of 
a  future  commerce,  and  sketched  in  outline  the  geographic 
basis  of  American  social  life.     The  fur  trade  made  and 
modified  Indian  policies,  directed  the  course  of  popula- 
tion, located  national  boundary  lines,  laid  the  founda- 
tion   of    much    of   our    present    financial    organization, 
created  the  first  of  the  race  of  American  millionaires, 
and  in  a  hundred  other  ways  set  its  stamp  upon  our  social 
institutions. 

Throughout  coloni.d  times  afrrirultnre  wa^.  {h.Q  b-^s-*c 
dominant  industry  in  all  the  colonics,  with  the  possible 


WHAT   THl",    COLONISTS    FOUND    IN    AMl.KKA         27 


c'xtcplion  of  some  of  the  fishinj^  communities  of  \cw 
I'.ii-hind.  A  hirtic  number  of  the  staple  crops  of  Europe 
were  >ucccssfui  here,  inclmhng  wheat.  l1ax,  apples,  and 
grapes.  Most  of  the  domotic  animals  of  Euro[)c  were 
tn!ii-i>lanted  io  this  country  with  little  change.  America 
uave  three  new  plants  to  asriculture.  -  corn,  tobacco, 
;;n(l  potatoes.  —  and  it  far  exceeds  all  the  rest  of  the  worlil 
in  the  produc'-)n  of  another  -cotton.  The  first  t.vo 
and  the  last  one  have  made  and  unmade  social  sy>lems 
and  <:overnmental  jjolicies.  and  have  determined  the 
methods  of  life  for  jjreat  sections  of  the  population.  A 
comi)lete  account  of  any  one  of  these  three  would  give 
a  far  more  accurate  history  of  America  (though  still 
wari)ed  and  incomplete)  than  the  biographies  of  any  half- 
(l(i/-n  "great  men"'  that  have  lived  on  this  continent. 

Only  two  animals  that  are  peculiar  to  America  have 
liad  anv  great  influence  on  agriculture,  —  the  turkey  and 
ihe  bison.  Until  within  the  last  decade  the  inlluencc  of 
the  latter  was  similar  to  that  of  all  other  wild  animals, 
merely  as  a  competitor  in  supjilying  meat,  but  attempts 
at  domestication  and  cross  breeding  with  domestic  cattle 
would  now  indicate  that  this  animal  may  be  destined 
to  play  a  more  important  part  in  the  future,  unless  the 
slight  remnant  of  his  blood  is  too  small  to  found  a  new 

race. 

America  was  not  an  untrodden  land  when  English- 
man and  Spaniard  first  set  foot  upon  its  shores.  Thinly 
scattered  over  its  vast  reaches  there  lived  a  race,  just 
evolving  out  of  the  hunting  and  fishing  stage  into  that  of 
a  rude  agriculture. 

The  Indian  has  exercised  a  profound  influence  upon 
American  history.     He  was  the  ablest  savage  fighter  the 


28 


SOC'AI,    F()|<(i;s    IN     \Mr;R[(\\    IIIST'  RY 


world  has  ever  known.     Man  for  man  he  has  taken  his 
weapons  from  the  while  man  an()  yet  held  his  own  in  ihe 
centuries  ],.n;,'  battle  from   the  Atlantic   to   the   I'.uiiic. 
He  has  retreated  before  siqurior  numbers.     He  has  never 
a(  knowledi^'ed    defeat.     The    e.\i>tence    of    a    relenlh.s 
watchful   foe  comj)elled   compactness  of  settlenunt,   de- 
termined the  location  of  towns  and  villat^os,  and  di-\  rl- 
oi)ed  a  ra(e  of  frontier  lighters  that  proved  the  deci.-ive 
inllueiue  in  every  war  in  which  this  nation  has  been  en- 
gaf^'ed.     The  Indian  trails  marked  the  roads  that  were 
followed  by  the  traders,  the  makers  of  hii;hways,  and  the 
builders  of  railroads,  each  in  turn.     Tobacco  and  corn 
had  both  been  domesticated  by  the  Indian,  and  he  tau,i,dit 
the  white  man  how  to  raise  them.     In  the  fur  trade  the 
Indian  was  always  an  imjxjrtant  factor,  and  the  trade 
with  Indian  tribes  was  for  more  than  two  centuries  an 
important  part  of  American  commercial  life. 

It  has  been  generally  accepted  by  historians,  based  u])on 
the  observation  of  almost  countless  examples,  that  when 
two  unlike  nations  of  unequal  strength  come  into  con- 
flict, the  succeeding  steps  will  be:    invasion,  conquest, 
enslavement,  amalgamation.     The  relation  of  the  Indian 
to  the  white  race  has  lacked  the  last  two  steps.     Although 
the  present  population  of  the  United  States  is  the  most 
composite  in  the  world,  it  contains  little  more  than  a 
trace  of  the  blood  of  the  original  inhabitants.     Xeither 
was  the  Indian  transformed  into  a  slave,  as  has  been  the 
case  with  multitudes  of  conquered  peoi)les.     This  was 
not  because  of  any  lack  of  inclination  in  that  direction 
by  the  white  invaders.     From  the  Xew  England  Puritans, 
who  divided  up  the  Pequod  women  and  children  after 
massacring  the  men,  and  sold  King  Philip's  son  to  West 


wii.vi'  in 


I.   COLONISTS    FOrM)    IN    AMIKH'^         2g 


I 

i 


ln,'ian  sugar  planters,  to  ihc  Spanianl.  who.  with  whip. 
,n,l  l.ol  iron>.  drove  a  multiludr  to  a  lu.rnble  .U-ath  .n 
the  mines  ol   (Vntral  and  South   Anuri^a.   atlunpts  to 
,„,lavc  the  In.lian  were  never  hirkin.u.     \  et  so  tar  as  the 
rue  was  a.ueerned  these  attempts  were  a  >tr-k,n-  failure. 
The  Indian  would  die.  but  he  would  not  >erve.     Dunn- 
t,K.  time  of  Southern  negro  slavery  if  it  became  known 
lint  ever  so  little  Indian  blood  llowed  in  the  veins  ot  a 
.1  .ve    hi-,  value  quickly  fell  off  or  entirely  disappeared, 
f„r  ii  was  recoirni/ed  that  it  was  always  but  a  question 
of  ii,ne  until  either  the  master  or  the  >lave  would  die  a 

vic^eiit  death.  .     . 

H  M  the  Indian  not  possessed  this  characteristic,  how 
different  American  history  might  have  been.  With  a 
servile  native  population,  acclimated  to  all  portion.s  of 
the  countrv.  the  negro  need  never  haN  e  been  stolen  from 
Africa ;  slavery  would  have  been  a  national  instead  ot 
a  sectional  Institution;  the  Indian  would  have  been 
ah.orbe<l  bv  the  whites  or  bred  in  slavery  until  his  num- 
bers were  equal  to,  or  exceeded,  those  of  his  masters,  and 
-  but  when  one  enters  the  realm  of  historical  "  ifs,    there 

is  no  place  to  stop.  ,     .       r       j 

We  have  seen  something  of  what  the  colonists  found 
when  thev  came  to   '  merica.     We  have  said  nothing  o 
the  miner'als  and  the  natural  wealth  that  were  found  at 
a  later  time.     This  chapter  is  meant  only  to  suggest  some 
of  the  things  that  will  be  discussed  at  much  greater 
length,  as  occasion  arises.     Yet  the  history  of  America 
is  just  the  storv  of  how  these  raw  materials,  natural  re- 
sources, indigenous  products,  and  peoples  were  used  by 
those  who  came  to  this  country,  and  by  their  descendants 
in  -satisfying  their  wants. 


CriAPTKR    IV 


Tin-:    COLONIAL   STAOi; 


TiiKRK  is  much  in  common  in  the  course  of  social 
evolution  throuj,'h  wiu'c  h  each  of  the  colonies  passed. 
Kach  was  working  out  the  i)rohlein  of  the  creation  of  a 
new  social  unit  with  inuch  tlie  same  materials.  In  the 
be.ginninj,'  the  colony  was  generally  established  as  an 
outlying  possession  of  some  private  trading  company. 
The  London  Company  and  the  Plymouth  Company  were 
private  corporations  to  which  nearly  all  of  what  is  now 
the  United  States  was  assigned  as  private  property.  Had 
the  first  shii)s  sent  out  discovered  gold,  or  realized  the 
rich  profits  to  be  made  in  furs,  the  whole  history  of  this 
country  would  possibly  have  been  ditTerent.  It  is  within 
the  realm  of  the  possible  that  these  companies  might 
have  buill  up  gigantic  private  enterprises  with  govern- 
mental functions  like  that  of  the  East  India  Company  in 
British  India.  That  this  idea  is  by  no  means  fanciful 
is  shown  by  the  history  of  the  Hudson  Bay  Company 
in  the  much  less  favorable  location  of  northern  Canada. 

The  first  expeditions  sent  out  by  these  companies  did 
not  find  gold.  They  did  not  iind  protits  of  any  kind. 
Consequently,  the  companies  soon  lost  interest  and  the 
colonies  were  permitted  to  work  out  their  own  salvation. 

The  course  of  exolution  pursued  in  each  colony  bears 
a  striking  resemblance  to  the  line  of  development  that 

30 


^ 


i'i^ 


Tin;  COl.oMAl.  >i  \(-i^ 


3« 


tin-  rare  has  followcl.  Caution  is  lurdcd  in  applying 
,l,i,  or  anv  ..tlicr  lu>t..riral  analu-y.  btraux'  the  n.hmi>ls 
v.rrf  n..t"p"'iiilivi'  >ava-is.  and  ihry  did  uoi  evolve 
indeptndcnt  of  the  remainder  of  llie  world. 

in  the  he.L'inninp  nearly  every  eolony,  beiii^'  conln.ntt  d 
v.ilh  the  problem  of  maintainini,' a  >mall -n.up  -  omix.^e.l 
of  individuals  of  nearly  e(iual  >tren-th.  in  llir  mi.Ul  ..f 
■I  ho^tiU'  environment,  solved  thai  problem  a-,  the  raie 
.nlved  it  at  the  same  sta^e  by  the  adoption  of  primitive 
M.mmunism.  As  soon  as  the  eolony  advaneed  to  the 
point  where  division  of  labor  and  the  importation  of 
dnme>lie  animals  with  divers'lknl  industry  made  its 
appearanee.  eommuni>m  was  naturally  di^earded.  ^  It 
lu.d  not  '-failed"  or  "sueeeeded."  or  been  "rejeeleil'"  by 
[\w  (uloni^ls  any  more  than  the  similar  stage  in  race 

hi.-lory.' 

Wry  earlv  the  colonies  bejjan  to  develo.)  important 
tlifferJnees.  which  were  destined  to  have  the  most  far- 
nachinj,'  conseciuences.  It  therefore  becomes  necessary 
to  condder  them  separately,  or  at  least  by  sections. 
'rhi>  divi>ion  and  the  peculiar  development  <if  the  various 
Mctions  depends  lari^'ely  upon  geographical  conditions, 
some  of  which  already  have  been  considered. 

In  each  stage  of  social  -voluti(m  the  size  of  the  social 
unit  depends  first  of  all  upon  the  extent  and  character  of 
the  transportation  system  upon  which  it  rests.  During 
colonial  times  there  were  three  systems  of  commercial 
communication  :  (i)  uj)  and  down  the  rivers  within  each 
colony  ;  (2)  along  the  coast  between  the  colonies  ;  (,0  for- 

i  Doyle,  •■i;n«li>h  Colonies  in  .\mcrica,"  Vol.  I,  pp.  3  5  '^M.  p>issim, 
when-  this  uvolulion  is  Ira^.d,  but  with  a  complete  misunderstanding  of 
its  explanation. 


32 


SOCIAL  r()kCF;s  i\   xMi-kicw  ni.^rokY 


cl^n.  :icr()>s  tin-  ocean.'  All  rxapt  tin-  last  of  tlust"  havt; 
to-day  htm  ov(.T>ha(l()Wi(i  by  the  public  hi^luvay>  and 
till'  railroads. 

SiK  h  a  ^y^tl•nl,  or  < onibiiiation  of  systems,  or  lack  of 
sy>tciii,  accurdinj,'  to  the  point    of    view,  tended    to    the 
c  real  ion  ol  a  >cTies  of  almost  i-olated  M)cieties  with  Ncrv 
dilfcrent  c  harai  teri-tio.      I-k  h  such  mx  iety  had  it-,  own 
seai)ort  which  exoKcd  into  the- (onuiurc  ial,  linancial.  and 
political  head  of  the  colony.     I'roin   tnis  citv  the  ri\cr 
reached  into  the  interior,  dctcrnn'ninj,'  the  direction  and 
extent  of  setlleniem.  and  ac  tinj,'  a>  the  common  carrier  for 
the  |)ro(lucc-  of  the  forest   and   later  of  the-  farms  that 
Krc'w  up  alon^'  its  banks.     The  colony  as  a  whole,  in  the 
l)ei,M"nnin^'  at  lea>t,  was  constantly  recruited  from  across 
the  ocean  and  procured  many  of  its  necessities  from  the 
same  source.      During,'  this  time  it  was  really  in  much 
closer  touch  with  Kuropc  than  with  i)erhaps  its  nearest 
nei^dibor  anions  the  other  colonies.- 

Aside  from  this  individual  isolation,  the  colonies  as  a 
whole  fell  into  three  well-marked  ^Toups.  These  groups 
were  New  England,  the  Middle  Colonies  (between  the 
Hudson  and  the  Potomac),  and  the  Southern,  King 
south  of  the  latter  river. 

'  WVi-den,  "Kconomir  and  Social  History  of  New  Ensland,"  Vol.  I, 

-  "  Kai  h  of  the  thirteen  original  colonies  had  one  or  more  seaports,  and 
the  main  ccirrent  of  trade  existing  during  the  entire  colonial  era,  and  in 
some  res|)e(  ts  up  to  nuu  h  later  periods,  was  between  the.-e  ports  and  the 
interior  districts  of  the  iolonie.s  in  which  they  were  respei  lively  located, 
on  the  .Mie  han-i.  and  the  outer  world.  :/,i  the  ocean,  un  the  mliJr.  Com- 
merce between  the  lolonies  wasof  limited  maiznitude.  and  ori-inally  nearly 
all  the  mocement-  made  from  one  colony  to  another  were  conducted  in 
shallops,  sloops,  schooners,  and  other  sea-uoing  vessels."—  I  I,  Rincvvalt. 
"Development  of  Transportation  Systems  in  the  United  States,"  p.  j. 


Tin:   C(JL(JM.\I-   hTACii: 


JJ 


In  ciuh  of  tlu'^o  oiIi)nits  a  somrwhat  dilTcrcnt  ^rfup  <>f 
Kuriiptaii.-i  wa>  working'  out  llu-  |)r.il)l(.T.  >f  a  ni'W  -oiiity 
with  till'  jKiuliar  natural  (.•nvironnuiU  oi  it,->  lotality. 

N.w  lai^'land  \va>  -rttldl  in  the  hi-^innin^;  larmly  by 
t!;c  l'urilan>.  the  l'.imii>li  cxprc-ioii  i<\  ihc  Kif.'rination. 
I  l;i  \  Inlc.nmii  nio-'tl>  to  the  niitMIr  da--,  urn-  ;:rniTally 
I'.iirly  Will  I'lluiati'd,  i-xtniiu  ly  in<li\  iduali-tir  in  tti.ir 
idiM-.  and  hi^oti-d  in  tlu  ir  ri'li^'ion.  'Iln-r  charai  ttTi-li(\s 
wvTv  ralluT  accentuated  than  otlurwi-r  by  bcini:  Irans- 
plaiitid  to  a  new  countr\'.  and  Ijy  tlic  fait  thai  whole 
iim,i;rti^,itions  came  together. 

In  it>  ph\>ical  features  Xew  F.nL'land  jio-^e-eil  sev- 
tral  i)oint-.  tlial  dilhnntiated  her  (juile  diarply  from 
thi'  other  colonies.  The  point  where  the  Ijreak  conies 
in  the  river>  between  the  tidewater  level  and  the  rise  of 
tlif  continental  m.unland  is  nuuh  closer  to  the  ocean 
tl'.aii  in  the  more  southern  portion  of  the  Atlantic  coa->t. 
'Ihr  rivers  could  be  navit^'ated  but  a  .diort  distance.  On 
the  other  hand,  this  gave  rise  to  numerous  water  i)owers, 
clo-(.'  to  llie  ocean,  at  the  head  of  navigation,  which  later 
marked  the  seat  of  manufacturing  cities.  "With  tlie 
e.xception  of  the  Connecticut,  therefore."  says  Semple/ 
'•wliich  added  fertile  meadow  lands  to  the  attractic:)n  of 
tlie  fur  trade,  the  streams  of  New  England,  in  conse- 
quence of  their  limited  basins  and  rapid,  broken  courses, 
scarcely  affected  early  settlement." 

There  was  a  negative  way  in  which  this  absence  of 
navigaVtle  rivers  affect  el  Xew  England  life.  In  the  other 
colonies  there  was  one  river  around  which  the  life  of  the 
colony  was  grouped  and  which  formed  the  main  highway 

'  I'.llcn  C'hurJiill  Semple.  ".Vmcrican  History-  and  its  Geographic 
Ldnciilions,"  p.  .'4. 


34 


soci 


FORCF.S    IX   AMKRICAN   HISTORY 


into  *lic  im  ior  and  for  commerce  witliin  the  colony 
itself.  Tlie  absence  of  such  rivers  in  New  England  kept 
Ihi'  .-I  ilemenls  close  to  the  coast,  and  made  the  ocean 
tlie  main  carrier  for  all  commerce,  local  or  foreign.  The 
geo;.';raphical  isolation  from  the  remainder  of  the  Atlantic 
coa.^t  led  to  an  intensive  growth  of  the  Xew  England 
Society. 

"Mountains  and  straggling,  rugged  hills  separated  hev 
from  the  great  northern  valleys.  Until  the  middle  oi 
our  century,  when  iron  ways  and  steam-driven  carriages 
I)ierced  the  mountain  chains,  carrying  exchanges  into 
the  Hud.son,  Mohawk,  and  the  St.  Lawrence  valleys, 
Xew  England  was  a  coastwise  community,  physically 
forced  into  the  economic  development  of  the  Atlantic 

A.        "I 

coast.    ' 

This  peculiar  isolated,  intensive  growth  so  emphasized 
industrial  and  social  institutions  as  to  give  them  a  re- 
markable power  of  impressing  themselves  upon  after- 
time.  In  this  regard  Xew  England  society  was  much 
like  carefully  bred  live  stock  in  that  it  showed  a  great 
power  of  persistence  and  capacity  of  impressing  its 
characteristics  upon  its  descendants  even  when  the 
degree  of  relationship  is  extremely  small. 

During  the  first  twenty  years  after  the  famous  landing 
at  Plymouth  Rock  in  1620,  Xew  England  life  rested  al- 
most entirely  upon  crude  agriculture,  fishing,  and  the 
trade  with  the  Indians.  Manufactured  articles  were 
brought  from  ^^ngland,  either  in  e.xchange  for  furs  or 
else  as  a  jii'.rt  of  the  possessions  of  the  steady  stream  of 
immigrants.     Agriculture   was   confined   largely  to   the 

'  W'wdeii,  "F.conomic  and  Social  History  of  Xew  England,"  Vol.  I, 
PI).  15-16. 


\  , 


Tin-:   COLONIAL   STAGE 


35 


raising  of  Indian  corn  under  the  instruction  of  friendly 

Indians. 

In  16:4  the  lirst  cattle  were  brought  over  by  (iovernor 
\Vin.-,low.     Tliese  increased  rapidly  and  were  au,<;nK-nted 
by  new  shii>mcnts  from  England  until  by  "  1632  no  farmer 
was  satisfied  to  do  without  a  cow;   and   there  was  in 
New  England,  not  only  a  domestic,  but  an  export,  demand 
for  th.e  West  Indies,  which  led  to  breeding  for  sale.     But 
the  market  was  soon  overstocked,  and  the  pri^c  of  cattle 
went   down    from   fifteen   and    twenty   pounds   to    five 
pounds;   and  milk  was  a  penny  a  quart."  '     This  latter 
statement  about  the  price  of  milk  means  very  little,  as 
cows  were  seldom  milked  at  this  time,  being  raised  prin- 
cipally for  their  hides,  and  secondly  for  meat,  and  only 
very  incidentally  for  their  milk.'- 

During  this  period  the  machinery  of  commercial  and 
industrial  life  and  therefore  of  society  in  general  was  ex- 
tremely crude.  The  trade  with  the  Indians  was  carried 
on  largely  by  barter,  or  by  the  use  of  the  shell  money 
called  "wampum."  which  the  colonists  adopted  from  the 
red  men.  The  very  fact  that  such  a  primitive  currency 
could  be  used  in  common  by  the  two  races  speaks  vol- 
umes for  the  nearness  to  which  they  time  to  living  upon 
the  same  social  stage.  In  addition  to  "wampum" 
various  commodities,  especially  corn  and  beaver  skins, 
were  constituted  mediums  of  exchange  by  colonial  law 
during  this  period.' 


'  A'bert  S.  Holies,  "Industrial  History  of  the  United  States,"  p.  115. 

'  [hid.,  p.  1 1(1. 

'  \Vee<lcn.  "  F.conomic  and  Social  Histor\-of  New  i:n;;land,"  Vol.  I,  pp. 
32-47,  is  a  very  full  di-  ussion  of  the  function  of  wampum  in  colonial  com- 
merce with  the  Indians. 


.:^'^ 


m 


mmmmm 


%:mM€T''-'WJ' 


ni^sr; 


36 


SOCIAL    FORCTLS    IN'    AMI.KICAX    HISTORY 


This  usL'  of  various  commodities  as  "money"  is  char- 
a(tt'ri>tie  of  an  cari_\  staf,'c  of  social  organization.  It  is 
one  through  which  the  white  race  in  other  lands  passed 
many  centuries  ago.  There  was  one  feature  of  the  emi- 
gration from  England  that  tended  to  i)revent  further 
reversion  to  lower  social  stages.  The  colonists  came  in 
groups,  generally  composed  of  a  single  church  congre- 
gation. This  transplanted  the  nucleus  of  a  social  or- 
ganization directly  to  the  Xew  World. 

About  1640  a  change  took  place  in  England  which  had 
direct  and  far-reaching  effects  u[)on  X(!W  England.  The 
struggle  between  the  Puritans  and  the  Cavaliers  broke 
into  open  warfare,  in  which  thi;  former,  under  Cromwell, 
were  victorious.  Naturally  there  was  no  longer  any 
necessity  for  emigration  on  the  part  oi  the  Puritans, 
(^n  the  contrary,  it  was  now  the  turn  of  the  Cavaliers  to 
emigrate,  but  as  the  majority  of  these  went  to  the  South- 
ern colonies  we  need  not  concern  ourselves  with  then 
just  now. 

The  stojipage  of  immigration  meant  many  things  to 
the  colony.  Each  new  family  had  brought  with  it  a 
supply  of  manufactured  articles  for  its  own  use  at  least. 
The  ships  which  brought  them  carried  similar  articles 
for  sale  to  the  other  colonists.  A  ship  laden  with  immi- 
grants could  alTord  to  carry  freight  cheaper  and  make 
much  more  frequent  trips  than  one  without  passengers. 

As  a  result  of  tliis  condition  Weedcn  '  tells  us  that,  — 

"There  were  many  sellers,  few  buyers,  and  hardly  any 

currency.     There  was  a  privation,  not  from  scarcity,  but 

it  was  enforced  in  the  midst  of  abundance.     Wares  would 

not  command  wares,  money  there  was  none,  and  prices 

'  Loi.  itl.,  \  ol.  I,  pp.  165-166. 


\  , 


THE   COLONIAL   STAGE 


37 


fell  10  one  half.  yea.  to  a  third,  and  staggered  at  last  at 
;ib()Ut  one  quarter  of  the  old  standard." 

As  we  shall  sec  many  times  in  the  history  of  this  coun- 
irv,  when  a  nation  is  thus  suddenly  thrown  back  upon 
its  own  resources,  it  begins  to  develop  new  lines  of  in- 
(lu>try.  In  this  case  the  colonists  were  forced  forward 
into  a  new  industrial  and  social  stage.  New  England 
now  entered  upon  the  road  of  diversified  industry,  the 
next  step  beyond  primitive  agriculture.  The  directions 
that  the  energies  of  the  colony  took  were  threefold,  — 
domestic  manufacturing,  fishing,  and  shipbuilding. 

May  13.  1640,  the  General  Court  of  Massachusetts, 
passed  an  order  to  ascertain  — 

"What  men  and  women  are  skillful  in  braking,  spin- 
ring,  and  weaving;  what  means  for  the  providing  of 
wheels ;  and  to  consider  with  those  skillful  in  that  manu- 
facture, what  course  may  be  taken  to  raise  the  materials 
and  produce  the  manuf:  :ture."  ^ 

In  1646  a  patent  was  granted  to  Joseph  Jenks  of  the 
same  colony  for  an  improvement  in  the  manufacture  of 
scythes  for  the  cutting  of  grass.  He  succeeded  in  produc- 
ing so  perfect  a  tool  for  this  purpose  that  little  improve- 
ment was  made  in  his  design  for  nearly  three  centuries.^ 
In  1648  an  iron  furnace  in  Lynn,  Massachusetts,  was 
turning  out  eight  tons  of  iron  a  week.  During  the  next 
ten  vears  furnaces  were  set  up  at  several  other  places  in 
New  England,  all  making  us,  of  the  "bog  ore"  to  be 
found  in  the  marshes.' 


V: 


•  \V.  R.  RaRnall,  "The  Textile  Industries  of  the  United  States,"  p.  4. 
'  \Vi.-e<len,  "Economic  and  Social  History  of  Xcw  Enj;land,"  Vol.  I, 

p-  i^V  _  ^  „  _      . 

'  A,  S.  Belles,  "  Industrial  History  of  the  IV.itcd  Stalci,'  h-  ^v4- 


!P5H,f^ 


'"       iiJiiiiiiBiiB 


ittWiii 


,.^.^^--— ^- 


38 


SOCIAL   FORCKS   IN    AMERICAN   HISTORY 


All  the<e  branches  of  manufacture  grew  steadily  during 
the  next  hundred  years.  But  faster  than  any  of  them 
grew  fishing  and  shipbuilding  and  all  manner  of  indus- 
trial life  connected  with  the  sea,  until  one  writer  declares 
of  the  people  of  Xew  England  at  this  time  that,  "The 
world  never  saw  a  more  amphibious  population."  ^ 

The  first  sawmill  was  built  at  Salmon  Falls,  New 
Hampshire,  in  1663,  and  was  the  beginning  of  the  great 
shipbuilding  industry  of  Xew  England.^ 

All  industrial  life  centered  around  the  sea.  Some- 
times a  farming,  fishing  sailor,  such  as  made  up  much 
of  the  population,  would,  with  the  aid  of  his  neighbors, 
build  a  ship  at  the  mouth  of  some  creek,  launch  it  during 
the  spring  freshet,  and  load  it  with  rum  for  the  African 
coast,  fish  for  the  Canaries,  or,  more  frequently,  with 
pitch,  tar,  hemp,  and  long  masts  for  England.  Here 
ship  and  cargo  would  both  be  sold,  while  the  former 
owner,  builder,  and  captain  would  ship  as  a  sailor  on  a 
return  voyage,  bringing  home  the  proceeds  of  his  venture. 

One  of  the  best  established  routes  of  colonial  trade  was 
the  famous  "rum-molasses-slaves"  triangular  voyage. 
Loading  with  rum  from  one  of  the  host  of  distilleries  that 
filled  the  coast  towns  of  Massachusetts  and  Rhode  Island, 
the  good  Puritan  captain  would  set  sail  for  the  African 
coast  with  instructions  to  "put  plenty  of  water  in  ye 
rum.  and  use  short  meusure  as  much  as  possible,"  as 
one  letter  which  has  been  preserved  quaintly  reads.  In 
Africa  the  rum  was  exchanged  for  "black  ivory,"  as  the 
poor,  entrapped  negroes  were  called.     Storing  this  mcr- 

'  Willis  J.  Al)l)ot.  "American  Mercliant  Ships  and  Sailors,"  p.  8. 
■>  i'!,. ,,,,._  5     J  :!rr!    "  Ip.du-Iri:'.!  '.•'.xDerinT-Mils  in    thp    Hrilish  Colonies 
of  North  .-Vmerica,"  John  Hopkins  Univ.  Studies  in  Hist,  and  Pol.  Set. 


\  , 


THE  COLONIAL  STAGE 


39 


chandise  away  in  hk  hold,  much  as  he  had  previously 
stored  the  hogsheads  of  rum.  the  ship  would  set  sail  for 
the  West  Indies  or  the  Carolinas,  where  such  of  the  cargo 
as  had  not  died  on  the  terrible  "middle  passage"  would 
be  traded  for  molasses,  f^om  which  in  turn  more  rum 
could  be  manufactured. 

A  society  built  upon  such  foundations  could  hardly 
be  expected  to  attain  the  perfection  which  tradition  has 
ascribed  to  Puritan  New  England.  That  it  was  some- 
thing quite  the  reverse  from  the  legendary  society  of 
most  school  histories  is  shown  from  the  following  quota- 
tion from  Weeden,  himself  a  New  England  writer :  — 

"We  have  seen  molasses  and  alcohol,  rum  and  slaves, 
gold  and  iron,  in  a  perpetual  and  unholy  round  of  com- 
merce. All  society  was  fouled  in  this  lust;  it  was  in- 
flamed by  the  passion  for  wealth ;  it  was  callous  to  the 
wrongs  of  imported  savages  or  displaced  barbarians.  .  .  . 
Cool,  shrewd,  sagacious  merchants  vied  with  punctilious, 
dogmatic  priests  in  promoting  this  prostitution  of  in- 
dustry." 

With  the  change  in  the  industrial  base  the  appearance 
of  commerce  and  manufacture  and  exchange,  the  whole 
social  organization  was  transformed.  One  of  the  first 
signs  of  this  was  the  adoption  of  a  "money  economy." 
"In  the  year  1670  Massachusetts  repealed  her  law.  'now 
injurious','  which  made  corn,  cattle,  etc.,  the  equivalent 
for  money."*  Nearly  twenty  years  before  (1652)  the 
same  colony  had  established  a  mint  at  which  the  famous 
"Pine  Tree  Shillings"  had  been  coined. 

These  first  signs  of  industrial  self-sufficiency  were  ac- 
companied by  the  beginnings  of  political  unrest,  and  the 

'  Weeden,  "Economic  Histor>-  of  Xew  Engiami,    Vui.  i,  p.  3J0. 


Il 


N 


40 


SOCIAL   FORCES   I.\   AMERICAN   HISTORY 


growth  of  a  general  independent  feeling.  One  of  the 
phase>  of  this  was  the  estabh'shment  of  the  New  England 
Confedeation  in  164,^,  comjjrising  all  the  Xcw  England 
colonies,  except  Rhode  Island,  which  was  kept  out  be- 
cause of  the  religious  heresy  of  its  founder,  Roger  Wil- 
liams, and  his  followers. 

New  England  has  been  hailed  as  the  birthplace  of 
social  equality,  and  orators   and    superficial    historians 
are  prone  to  trace  all  democratic  institutions  back  to 
the  famous  "New  England  town  meeting."     The  fact 
is  that  in  the  beginning  these  colonies,  so  far  as  local 
government  is  concerned,   were   theocratic  autocracies. 
Only  those  who  were  property  holders  and  members  of 
the  Established  Church  had  any  voice  whatever  even 
in    these    town  meetings.     The  social    gradations   with 
their  privileges  were  carefully  determined  by  law,  even 
to^  the  sort  of  clothing  which  each  social  class  was  per- 
mitted to  wear,  and  the  places  which  its  members  were 
to  occupy  in  the  "meeting-house."     As  soon  as  even  the 
beginnings  of  a  wage-working  class  appeared,  the  wages 
of  its  members  were  fixed  by  law,  and  their  position  care- 
fully defined.* 

When  this  stage  had  been  reached  in  each  of  the  col- 
onies, they  began  to  have  a  common  development  which 
can  be  better  traced  as  a  whole  after  considering  the 
course  by  which  the  others  arrived  at  this  same  stage. 

'  Wccdcn.  lor.  cit..\o\.  I,  pp.  qS-oQ  ;  McM.istcr,  "The  Acquirement  of 
Political.  Socuil,  and  Industrial  Rights  of  Man  in  .\merica,"  pp.  31-36 
on  general  condition  of  colonial  laborers.  ' 


=:^^''S ,  j 


THK   COLONIAL  STAGE 


41 


i 


Virginia  and  the  Southern  Colonies 

When  wc  cro^s  the  Potomac,  the  physical  conditions 
arc  so  different  that  although  the  [)eople  who  came  as 
colonists  were  practically  the  same  as  those  of  New  Eng- 
land, yet  the  industrial  and  social  organization  which 
thcv  developed  was  strikingly  different.  Something 
has  already  been  said  of  the  physiographic  conditions  of 
\irginia.  There  is  one  phase,  however,  that  is  so  strik- 
ingly described  by  John  Fiske  in  his  "Old  Virginia  and 
Her  Neighbors"  as  to  be  worth  quoting.     He  says  (Vol. 

I.  p.  363)  :- 

'•The  country  known  as  'tidewater  Virginia'  is  a  kind 
o{  sylvan  Venice.  Into  the  depths  of  the  shaggy  wood- 
land for  many  miles  on  either  side  of  the  great  bay  the 
salt  tide  ebbs  and  flows.  One  can  go  surprisingly  far 
inland  on  a  seafaring  craft,  while  with  a  boat  there  are 
but  few  plantations  on  the  old  Vork  peninsula  to  which 
one  cannot  approach  very  near." 

This  broad  alluvial  belt  was  in  striking  contrast  with 
the  narrow  strip  of  glaciated  clay  that  fringed  the  coast 
of  New  England.  The  '"  fall  line  "  was  distant  several 
hundred  miles  from  the  coast ;  there  were  no  rich  fishing 
banks  within  easy  sailing  distance,  and  the  nature  and 
the  form  of  agriculture  which  arose  made  for  dispersion 
and  not  for  concentration  of  population. 

In  the  beginning  Virginia  was  ruled  by  a  trading  com- 
pany seeking  profits  for  its  shareholders.  For  the  first 
lew  years  there  was  little  sign  of  any  profits.  In  fact  the 
cok)nists  repeatedly  came  within  a  narrow  margin  of 
starvation.  Then  came  the  discovery  of  the  possibilities 
in  the  cultivation  of  a  plant  that  was  destined  lo  form 


42  SOCIAL    FURCES   IX   AMERICAX   HISTORY 

the  basis  of  the  industrial  life  of  Virginia  for  many  years 
to  onne.  This  was  tobacco,  of  whose  inllucnce  Henry 
Cabot  Lodge  says  ;    - 

"Tobacco  founded  this  colony  and  ga\'e  it  wealth.     It 
was  the  currency  of  Virginia,  and  as  bad  a  one  as  could 
be  devised,  and  fluctuating  with  every  crop,  yet  it  re- 
tained its  place  as  a  circulating  medium  despite  the  most 
strenuous  efforts  to  introduce  specie.     The  clergy  were 
paid  and  the  taxes  levied  in  tobacco.     The  whole  pros- 
perity of  the  colony  rested  upon  it  for  more  than  a  cen- 
tury, and  it  was  not  until  the  period  of  the  Revolution 
that  other  croj  .  began  to  come  in  and  to  replace  it.     The 
fluctuations  in  tobacco  caused  the  first  conflict  with  Eng- 
laml,  brought  on  by  the  clergy,  and  paved  the  way  to 
resistance.     In  tobacco  the  X'irginian  estimated  his  income 
ancl  the  value  of  everything  he  possessed ;    and  in  its 
various  functions,  as  well  as  in  its  methods  of  cultivation, 
it  had  strong  effect  upon  the  character  of  the  people. 

"Tobacco  planting  made  slaves  necessary  and  profit- 
able,   and    fastened    slavery    upon    the   province.     The 
method  of  cultivation,  requiring  intense  labor  and  watch- 
ing for  a  short  period,  and  permitting  complete  idleness 
for  the  rest  of  the  year,  fostered  habits  which  alternated 
feverish  exertion  and  languid  indolence."  ' 
^  The  discovery  that  the  cultivation  of  tobacco  for  the 
European  market  afforded  a  means  by  which  the  colony 
could  be  made  to  produce  a  profit  at  once  aroused  the 
interest  of  the  stockholders  of  the  company.     So  long  as 
the  colonists  were  starving  and  calling  constantly  for 
relief  there  was  little  interest  on  the  part  of  the  London 
owners  of  the  corporation.     But  now  there  was  the  possi- 
»  See  also  Fiske,  "Old  Virginia  and  Her  Xcighbors,'"  Vol.  I,  p.  22^. 


\^. 


,^^?#' 


THE   COLONIAL  STAGE 


43 


bility  of  building  up  a  gigantic  and  powerful  commercial 
monopoly.     Just  what  the  result  of  the  exploitation  of 
this  crop  by  a  great  trading  corporation  owning  the  entire 
southern  half  of  what  is  now  the  United  States  would 
have  been  we  shall  never  have  an  opportunity  to  know. 
Political  considerations  (resting,  to  be  sure,  upon  economic 
conditions)  in  England  did  not  permit  the  experiment  to 
he  tried.     King  James  I  was  having  a  hard  time  to  keep 
down  the  rising  power  of  the  commercial  class.     He  was 
intriguing  with  reactionary  Spain  and  threatening  and 
ii-hting  rebellious  subjects  at  home  in  his  efforts  to  that 
Liid.     Naturally  the  founders  of  the  Virginia  Company 
were  of  the  rising  commercial  class.     They  were  estab- 
lishing the  forms  of  democracy  and  representative  gov- 
ernment in  their  colony.     The  first  representative  body 
in  .\merica  was  the  Virginia  "House  of  Burgesses,"  which 
was  convened   in   1619.     James  was   assured   that   the 
London  Company  was  but  a  "seminary  to  a  seditious 
Parliament,"  ^  and  he  therefore  revoked  their  charter,  — 
the  sacredness  of  corporation  property  not  having  as  yet 
become  a  fundamental  principle  of  jurisprudence. 

\'irginia,  consequently,  was  left  to  work  out  her  salva- 
tion, like  New  England,  as  an  almost  independent  prov- 
ince. 

The  most  striking  feature  of  Southern  agriculture  was 
the  great  size  of  the  individual  estates.  This  rested  upon 
the  plantation  system,  a  system  inseparable  from  a 
one-crop  or  staple  agriculture  in  an  alluvial  country. 
The  first  members  of  the  London  Company  were  given 
grants  of  large  extent,  and  a  method  was  soon  provided 
by  which  these  could  be  extended  to  almost  any  size. 

» Ibid.,  Chap.  VL 


it^Xh^. 


44  SOCIAL    roKCKS    IN    AMKklC.W    HISTORY 

"Kvcry  shardioldcr  who  met  the  cost  of  importinR  an 
ahlr-h.Mhui  laborer,  man  or  woman,  was  entitled  to  lilty 
arres  m   the  lir.«,t  division  ami   lilty  additional   in   the 
M-c'>n.l.  ,  .  .     Unscrupulous    planters    obtained    grants 
in  (onsideration  of  passage  money  i)ai(|  for  members  of 
their  own  families  or  for  their  own  journeys  to  and  from 
Knf,'lan(l.     The  land  oirues  «rew  corrupt,  and  soon  it  was 
not  deemed  necessary  to  brin-  evidence  of  passage  paid 
A  small  fee  handed  to  the  secretarv  insured  the  solicited 
grant  with  no  questions  asked.     This  practice  became 
sogeneralthat  it  was  finally  ri705)  sanctioned  bylaw 
At  the  close  of  the  century    he  average  size  of  a  Virginia 
estate  was  seven  hundred  acres,  and  many  a  planter 
owned  thousands."  ' 

These  estates  were  extremely  profitable  when  worked 
with  the  slaves  brought  by  the  New  England  and  British 
tra.lers.     A  body  of  wealthy  planters  arose  resting  upon 
a  subject  population.     Tobacco  being  an  export  crop 
and  demanding  the  entire  energies  of  those  raising  it,' 
other  industries  were  neglected,  and  the  South  became 
dependent  upon  the  Xew  England  shipbuilders  and  mer- 
chants.    The  exhaustive   methods  of  agriculture  com- 
pelled frequent  abandonment  of  the  old  fields  and  the 
conquest  of  new  ones  from  the  forest. 
Early  in  the  eighteenth  century  the  larger  portion  of 

"IVoviHT  7"'"^^?'  "'^^«^'  «f  »h<=  ^"'''^'i  ^'-tes,"  p.  3,,.  Greene's 
Inn.mui  Amenca '  says;  "(Governor  St«ttswo,Kl  signed  on  one 
o-as,on  several  ^-rants  of  ten.  tuenly,  an.i  forty  thonsan.i  acres,  includ- 
'n«  a.,  avycsate  of  over  8r..ooo  acres  for  himself.  Theoretical! v  grants 
«ere  . on.litione.l  upon  occiipation  an.l  im,)rovenient.  hut  the  land  ad- 
m>nMra.,on  was  in  the  h.ands  of  the  governor  and  council,  or  sometimes 
ot  the  councilors  alone,  who.  being  themselves  laru.  Inn^.h.W....  .,„„ 
.a.v  ,„  eniorc.ng  rules  which  operated  against  the  interests  of  their  clasl  " 


Tin-;   COLONIAL   STAGE 


45 


I 


the  rich  alluvial  lands  alon^  the  coast  had  become  pri- 
•  lie  property.  Settlement  was  therefore  pushed  back 
upon  what  is  callcl  the  Piedmont  plateau.  This  was  the 
land  above  the  "fall  line"  of  the  rivers,  and  its  soil  and 
(()n>e(iuent  crojis  and  social  organization  was  so  wholly 
.lilTerent  as  to  ha^  -'  the  most  important  elTccls  upon  the 
whole  hi^tory  of  this  region,  and  indeed  upon  the  history 
ol  the  whole  country. 

This  physiographic  line  received  a  still  sharper  em- 
phasis through  the  fact  that  it  chanced  to  coincide  with 
a  racial  tlivision.     It  so  happened  that  when  in  1700  the 
line  of  westward  advance  of  settlement  in  Virginia  had 
just  reached  this  Piedmont  plateau,  and  when  the  rich 
alluvial  tobacco  land  had  all  been  divided  up  into  pri- 
vately owned  plantations,   the  great  exodus  from   the 
north  of  Ireland,  which  has  already  been  described,  took 
place."     The  upland  agriculture  and  the  social  organiza- 
tion based  upon  it  was  from  the  beginning  totally  different 
from  that  of  the  tidewater  region.     The  back  country 
people  were  raisers  of  corn  and  livestock,  of  a  very  stunted 
kind  to  be  sure.     They  were  most  of  all  hunters  and 
trappers  and  explorers  of  the  wilderness.     From  them 
sprung  a  race  of  frontiersmen  and  Indian  fighters  that 
was  to  become  the  social  class  most  characteristic  of 
American  society. 

The  period  of  the  "Commonwealth"  in  England  had 
an  important  effect  in  Virginia  as  well  as  i.i  New  England. 
This  elTect  was,  however,  very  different.  While  in  New 
England  the  triumph  of  the  Puritan  in  the  mother  coun- 
try stopped  immigration  almost  entirely,  it  gave  a  strong 
impetus  to  a  certain  sort  of  immigration  into  Virginia. 
»  John  Fiake,  "Old  Virginia  and  Her  Neighbors,"  VoL  II,  pp.  456-461. 


hi 


!l 


^Hing> 


mim 


40 


.S( )( 


F()RCi:S    I\    AMKklCAN-   iriST()kY 


A  minilKT  of  the  Cavaliers,  fin(Hn<j  Kn;,'lan(l  no  longer 
a^;rieal)lf  as  a  plate  of  residence,  eame  to  the  N'ew  World.' 
'liiese  were  men  of  wealth  and  power,  and  they  retained 
their  power  in  X'ir^inia.  This  was  the  time  when  the 
f;!niiliesof  Randoljjh.  Madison,  Mason,  Monroe,  Marshall, 
Washington,  and  many  others  whose  names  were  to  be 
famous  in  American  history  came  to  these  shores. 

Such  a  society  was  bound  to  develop  industrial  classes 
that  would  stru^^h'  for  mastery.     Throughout  colonial 
times,  and  indeed  for  many  years  to  follow,  there  was 
always  one  main  line  of  cleavage.     With  variations  of 
numerous  kinds,  .^ome  of  which  occasionally  obscured  the 
basic  division,  this  line  coiuiriued  almost  until  the  present 
generation.     This  was  the  conflict   between   the   "back 
country"  and   the   coast   district.     The  causes  of   this 
conflict  of  interest  were  numerous.     In  the  first  place, 
the  coast  population  was  a  trading  creditor  class  to  which 
the  back  country  people  were  indebted.     The  frontier 
always  olTered  an  opportunity  of  escajie  from  industrial 
servitude,   both   wage  and   chattel,   and   this  naturally 
displeased  those  who  profited  by  such  servitude.     The 
older  sections  have  always  opposed  further  e.xpansion, 
sometimes  openly,  but  more  frequently  in  an  indirect 
and  sometimes  secret  manner.     England  long  endeavored 
to  restrict  settlement  to  a  narrow  strip  along  the  coast. 
The  ni'Tchants  oi  the  coast  were  often  deeply  interested 
in  the  fur  trade,  and  the  advance  of  settlement  wiped 
out  this  trade.     There  was  always  comjilaint  on  the  part 
of  the  frontiersmen  that  they  were  overcharged  by  the 

'  John  Fiske,  "Old  Virfiinia  ami  Her  \cii:hh(,r>.."  Vol.  II,  pp.  27-28; 
Phillip  .McxandtT  Hnicc.  "Kconomir  Ifistcirv  of  X'iririnia  in  the  l^evcn- 
teenth  Centun,"  Vol.  I,  p.  246,  Vol.  II,  pp.  487-581. 


w 


Tin:    COI.ONIM.  STAGE 


47 


oast  merchant...   whik-   tin-  latter   retorted   with   com- 
,,1  ,ints  of  the  nuniK.vm-nt  of  cltbts.     The  relation,  with 
thr  Indians  proved  another  constant  source  of  friction. 
Ilu'  "back  counlrv"  men  were  always  crowdinj^  the  In- 
dian from  his  hunting  ground,  ami  coming  into  contlict 
with  him.     ''"hcv  were  therefore  ccmtinually  asking  for 
troops  and  supplies  for  military  expe.lili.ms  and  f.)rti- 
IH  uions.     The  coast  residents,  wishing  to  use  the  Indian 
f,,r  trading  purposes,  or  at  least  indilTcrent  to  his  depre- 
.lations.  opposed  ai)propriations  for  protection  against 

his  attacks. 

In  1076  this  conflict  in  Virginia  broke  into  open  war 
as  '•  Hacon's  Rebellion."     There  were  peculiar  local  and 
jHTM.nal  amditions  in  this  conflict  as  in  all  subsequent 
ones   but  the  causes  assigned  for  the  struggle  are  prac- 
licallv  tho>e  given  above.     Govern.)r  Berkeley  had  been 
sent  from  England  and  had  become  the  especial  repre- 
scntative  of  the  Cavalier  class  that  emigrated  at  this 
time.     Mis   character   may   be   judged    from   a   famous 
e.xtrac  t  from  his  report  to  the  Commissioners  of  Planta- 
tions in  1670.     In  respcmsc  to  the  question, 

'What  course  is  taken  about  the  instructing  of  the 
people  within  your  government  in  the  Christian  re- 
ligion?'" he  rejilied:  — 

'•The  same  course  that  is  taken  in  England  out  of 
towns;  every  man  according  to  his  ability  instructing 
his  children.  Wc  have  forty-eight  parishes,  and  our 
ministers  are  well  paid,  and  by  my  consent  should  be 
better,  if  thcx  would  pray  ojlcncr  and  preach  less.  But  of 
all  other  commodities,  so  of  this,  the  worst  is  sent  us,  and 
we  had  few  that  we  could  boast  of.  since  the  persecution 
in  Cromwcirs  tyranny  drove  divers  worthy  men  hither. 


48 


SOCIAL    F-()KCi;S    I.\    AMKRIC.W    HlSTcjRV 


But,  I  thank  Ciotl,  there  are  no  free  schools,  nor  printinf^, 
and  I  hope  wc  shall  not  have  them  these  hundred  years; 
for  learning  lias  brought  disobedience  and  heresy  and 
sects  into  the  world,  and  printing  has  divulged  them, 
and  libels  against  the  best  government.  God  keep  us 
from  both  :" 

Berkeley  was  a  direct  representative  of  the  royal  party 
in  England.     He  was  parceling  out  the  rich  plantation 
lands  of  \'irginia  among  his  favorites  even  more  reck- 
lessly than  had  been  the  custom  hitherto.     He  had  a 
subservient  House  of  Burgesses,  composed  of  the  rich 
I)lanters,  and  he  refused  to  call  a  new  election.'     He  was 
directly  concerned  in  the  fur  trade  and  was  reported  to 
have  made  agreements  with  the  very  Indians  who  were 
massacring   the   settlers    on    the    frontier.     Finally   in 
1676  Bacon  gathered  an  army  in  spite  of  the  orders  of  the 
Governor,  defeated   the  Indians,  and  then  marching  to 
Jamestown,  compelled  the  election  of  a  new  House  of 
Burges.scs,  and  was  a  successful  candidate  in  that  elec- 
tion.    When  Berkeley  continued  to  plot  against  his  life 
Bacon  fled  to  the  frontier  to  gather  another  army,  which 
he  again  led  first  against  the  Indians  who  had  risen  once 
more,  and  then  back  again  to  Jamestown,  which  was  then 
burned  to  the  ground. 

In  the  midst  of  these  stirring  events  he  was  taken  sick 
and  died,  and  Berkeley  took  such  bK)od>  vengeance  as 
to  call  forth  the  historic  remark  from  Charles  II:  "As 
I  live,  the  old  fool  has  put  to  death  more  people  in  that 
naked  country  than  I  did  for  the  murder  of  my  father."  ^ 

'  Wilson,  "History  of  the  American  People."  \"(^1.  I.  pp.  ^56-275 
-  A  <iintemporan-  rcivirt  l>y  a  memherof  the  Xir^inia  Council  contains 
some  sentences  that  throw  a  striking  hght  on  the  character  of  Bacon's 


u 


ih^^-^^s^  "t.j^t^f^'r''ii 


Tin:   COLONIAL  STAGE 


49 


The  story  of  Virginia  was  typical  of  that  of  Georgia 
and  the  Carolinas.  In  each  there  was  the  same  phinta- 
tion  >vstem,  the  same  division  of  interests  l)etween  coast 
and  back  country.  In  the  Can.Hnas  the  fur  trade  was 
of  even  more  importance,  and  it  was  succeeded  by  a  stage 
which  was  of  Httle  importance  in  Virginia,  but  which  was 
to  api)ear  again  and  again  in  other  portions  of  the  coun- 
try, —  the  ranching  industry.' 


The  Middle  Colonies 
In  very  many  senses  of  the  word  the  term  "Middle" 
api)lies  to  the  colonies  of  New  Vork.  Pennsylvania.  New 
Jer>ey.and  Delaware.  In  climate  and  industrial  and  social 
structure  they  lay  between  the  South  and  Xew  England. 
The  soil  lacked  the  alluvial  richness  of  Virginia  and  the 

Rchellion:  "  Hao.n  Ralht-rs  about  him  a  R.ibt.le  of  the  Iwsesl  sort  of 
I'cople,  whose  Conditions  are  siah  as  l.y  a  change  couUl  not  admit  of 
uor>c.  with  these  he^an  to  stand  in  Defyance  a^.iinst  the  Kovemment.  .  .  . 

'.Of  are  the  men  that  are  sett  up  for  the  K"o<i  "f  >■«-"  Country ;  who  lor 
N  c  CISC  of  the  Poore  will  have  no  taxes  paied  .  .  .  w  .uld  have  all  magis- 
tr.uic  and  v  crnment  taken  a«ay  &  sett  up  one  themselves  &  to 
HKikc  llitir  g,.od  Intentions  more  manifest  stick  not  to  talk  openly  of 
-liarein«  men's  I'.statcs  among  themselves." 

'  "In  I  70S  it  was  estimatc<l  that  over  50.000  skins  were  shii)i>ed  fn.m 
Charlc-lun  annually.  ...  In  1  7.^1  the  item  of  deerskins  alone  amounted 
t<)j:;;,ooo.  .  .  .  The  fur  trade  was  at  its  Ixrst  from  1 721  to  1743-  •^ft^^r 
that  it  hecan  to  decline.  In  South  Carolina  it  declined  rapidly  after  the 
removal  ..I  the  Clierokees  from  the  larger  [xirlion  of  the  up-countr\-  in 
17:;^.  It  had  heen  one  of  the  leading  indu>tries  of  the  colony,  and  even 
ablate  as  i  74S  it  ranked  next  to  ri.e  in  the  value  of  the  amount  exported. 
The  total  vahieof  the  exiK)rls  from  Nov.  i,  i  747,  to  Nov.  1 .  i  74^,  amounted 
to  fi, 1:0. 500, of  which  rice  supplied  £018,750  worth,  and  the  fur  trade 

L:;:,^oo.  .  .  .  The  deiline  of  the  fur  trade  in  the  decade  following 
indicated  that  the  'ir-t  phase  of  frontier  life  '  •""  passwl.  The  trader  had 
started  his  operations  on  the  coast ,  and  a.;  t '  frontier  receded  he  followed 
to  make  room  for  the  cowpcn  keepers." 


1 


r 


ii 


50 


SOCIAL   I-(jRCi;S   I\   AMERICAN   HISTORY 


barren  rockincss  of  Massachusetts  and  Connecticut. 
Ilcnce  it  (lid  not  drive  its  population  to  the  sea  in  boats 
nor  attract  them  to  great  plantations,  but  built  up  in- 
stead a  race  of  small  farmers  that  was  destined  for  many 
generations  to  be  the  dominant  factor  in  American  society. 
Its  rivers  were  long  enough  for  navigation,  but  did  not 
pa 'take  of  the  marshy  character  of  the  James  and  the 
Roanoke.  They  were  preeminently  fitted  for  commerce 
rather  than  for  agriculture  or  manufacturing. 

New  \'ork,  like  several  other  colonies,  was  started  as 
a  trading  venture  by  a  commercial  corporation,  in  this 
case  by  the  Dutch  West  India  Company.  Holland 
was  crowding  Spain  for  first  place  in  the  commercial 
world,  and  was  to  hold  that  position  for  a  moment  before 
being  pushed  back  by  rapidly  advancing  England.  In 
sj)ite  of  the  great  wealth  that  came  from  the  fur  trade  in 
New  York,  the  Dutch  West  India  Company,  like  all  the 
other  proprietary  companies  that  established  colonies 
in  America,  received  but  small  profits.  To  the  time  of 
the  control  by  this  Company  is  due  the  establishment 
of  the  "jxitroon"  estates.  In  its  elTorts  to  secure  a 
permanent  agricultural  population  the  Company  granted 
great  tracts  of  country  reaching  back  for  miles  on  either 
side  of  the  Hudson,  together  with  certain  semi-feudal 
rights  to  those  who  brought  over  a  certain  number  of 
settlers.  In  few  cases  did  this  result  in  establishing 
permanent  settlements  such  as  were  intended,  but  it 
did  succeed  in  creating  a  mass  of  indefinite  legal  relations 
that  still  haunt  the  New  York  courts.* 

Pennsylvania  was  also  a  private  property  in  the  be- 

•  John  Fiske,  "Dutch  and   Quaker  Colonies  in   America,"  Vol.  II, 
PP-  133-140. 


.iH' 


THE  COLONIAL   STAGE 


SI 


ginning,  but  was  established  largely  for  other  reasons 
than  pers<jnal  profit,  although  the  family  of  William  Pe:.n 
sought  very  hard  to  derive  such  a  profit  from  it. 

Both  New  York,  and  Pennsylvania  contained  a  large 
percentage  of  settlers  from  Continental  Europe.  Tenn- 
s\lvania  was  especially  the  refuge  of  the  Palatinate 
Germans.' 

Xone  of  the  Middle  colonics  endured  the  periods  of 
general  hardship  that  came  near  destroying  Xew  Eng- 
land and  Virginia  in  the  cradle.     Almost  from  the  be- 
ginning the\-  were  fairly  prosperous  and  grew  rapidly. 
From  the  first  the  agricultural  basis  of  the  country  was 
distinct  from  that  of  Xew  England  or  the  South.     It  was 
not  a  supplementary  industry  wrung  from  a  barren  soU 
to   assist   in   supporting   an   "amphibious  population." 
Xeilher  was  it  the  plantation  production  of  a  great  staple 
ioT  exjwrt.     It  was  the  small,  diversified,  self-supporting 
farming  that  was  destined  to  be  for  many  years  the  largest 
element    in    American    industrial    life.     Moreover,    just 
because  this  form  of  farming  is,  for  the  early  stages  of 
caiiitalism  at  least,  the  most  economical,  it  was  not  long 
until  Philadelphia  was  the  leading  port  in  America,  pass- 
ing even  Boston  in  the  amount  of  goods  exported.     Xor 
was  it  so  many  years  before  Boston  was  crowded  to  third 
place  with  Xew  York  at  the  head.     The  furs,  lumber, 
hides,  and  other  diverse  products  reached  a  greater  value, 
and  became  the  foundation  of  a  larger  and  more  stable 
commerce  than  cotton,  fish,  rum,  or  slaves. 

Moreover,  if  Xew  England  and  the  South  were  drawing 
vast  profits  from  rum  and  slaves  and  smuggling.  Xew 
York  was  not  without  an  even  more  shady  and  profitable 

*  See  pp.  15-17. 


■rf 


■M 


It! 


•a5^:«i'^-*3iH  -Miiiv.4.' 


5^ 


SOCIAL    FORCKS    I.\    A.MKRIC  \\    HISTORY 


coninKTcc,  for  lliis  city  was  the  headquarters  of  seven- 
tienth-century  j)ira(y.  This  was  the  golden  age  of 
piracy.  Spain  was  still  rich  in  commerce.  Her  ships 
were  bringing  valuable  cargoes  from  the  New  World  to 
the  Old.  But  Spain,  in  spite  of,  or  on  account  of,  the  ease 
with  which  she  was  obtaining  certain  forms  of  wealth 
from  America,  had  lost  her  j)lace  as  the  foremost  com- 
mercial nation.  She  had  now  been  relegated  to  a  posi- 
tion much  inferior  to  either  Holland  or  Ijigland. 

Spain  and  Holland  h;iving  lost  the  j)ower  to  protect 
their  still  rich  commerce,  a  race  of  pirates  aros-  who 
preyed  u[)on  the  merchant  ships  of  these  nations.  Xew 
^'ork  was  one  of  the  chief  harbors  for  the  disposal  of 
piratical  plunder.'  The  entire  colonial  government 
became  involved  in  jiiracy.  The  pirates  were  forced  to 
share  their  booty  with  the  royal  governors,  and  this  fact 
was  cited  as  one  of  the  grievances  of  the  party  which 
oppo'ipd  these  governors.  This  matter  finally  dima.xed 
with  the  notorious  affair  of  Captain  Kidd,  who  was  sent 
out  to  hunt  the  i)irates.  but  found  piracy  more  profitable, 
and  was  himself  finally  hung.  —  not  because  he  was  worse 
than  the  others,  but  because  his  career  came  just  at  the 
close  of  the  period  when  piracy  was  almost  a  legitimate 
means  of  livelihood,  and  when  the  navies  of  England  and 
Ht)lland  had  become  sufficiently  strong  to  prevent 
I)iracy. 

By  the  close  of  the  seventeenth  century  the  same  class 
distinctions  that  had  arisen  in  the  other  colonies  were 
api)arent  in  Xew  ^'ork. 

"Long-continued  arbitrary  taxation  and  the  repeated 
failure  to  obtain  representati\  e  government  had  caused 

1    I,ilin   FicLi-     "Ilntrh  an'l  'Til  il-,.r  r,.l,.n;,.^  "  \^^l      \}     ■„■>      •■■■■._,,. 
J" ~"  *      '"■*   '^  ""    ' -■  '        1 'i       '  '  *      'OJ 


Mi.^ 


I^?Kt^\ 


THK  COLONIAL  STAGE 


S3 


much  popular  discontent.  Though  the  population  of  the 
little  city  was  scarcely  more  than  4000  souls,  a  distinc- 
tion of  classes  was  plainly  to  be  seen.  Without  regard 
to  race  the  small  shopkeepers,  small  farmers,  sailors, 
hliipwrights,  and  artisans  were  far  apart  in  their  sym- 
])athies  from  the  rich  fur  traders,  T>atroons.  lawyers,  and 
royal  olTicials."  ' 

This  antag(jnism  broke  into  armed  rebellion  under 
Jaiob  Leisler,  in  1689.  The  royal  Governor  was  over- 
thrown, and  Leisler  ruled  for  a  time  in  his  place.  But 
later  came  reenforcements  from  IJigland,  and  Leisler 
paid  the  penalty  of  his  rebellion  with  his  life.  "Had 
things  gone  as  Leisler  hoped  and  exj)f(led."  says  John 
Fiske,  "the  name  of  Leisler  would  be  inseparably  asso- 
ciated with  the  firm  establishment  oi  representative 
government  and  the  first  triumph  of  democracy  in  the 
prt)vince  of  Xew  York." 

The  same  political  lines  existed  in  Pennsylvania,  but 
did  not  find  violent  expression  until  1763,  when  a  body 
of  between  two  and  three  hundred  armed  frontiersmen 
moved  ujxjn  Philadelphia.  Benjamin  Franklin  was  sent 
to  their  camp  by  the  Governor,  and  through  him  they 
presented  a  list  of  their  grievances.  They  :omplained 
of  the  unfair  method  of  districting  the  color  y  by  which 
the  back  countries  were  given  a  much  smaller  number 
of  representatives  in  the  colonial  legislature  in  propor- 
tion to  population  than  the  older  districts.  This  was 
a  universal  method  of  maintaining  the  domination  of  the 
conmiercial  classes  during  the  colonial  period.  The 
complaint  also  voiced  the  old  grievance  concerning  the 
Indians.     Indeed,  it  was  to  attack  some  Indians  who  had 


r  1  •  t      1  ■    1 


II.p.   :S4. 


54 


SOCIAL   FORCES   IN   AMERICAN  HISTORY 


been  given  shelter  in  Philadelphia  that  they  had  moved 
upon  that  city.  The  j^aper  money  controversy  was  also 
an  issue  here  as  it  v.as  in  nearly  every  colony.' 

Having  voiced  their  complaints,  the  backwoodsmen 
di.sbande(l  and  went  home,  so  that  Pennsylvania  was 
spared  the  bloodohed  that  had  taken  place  in  other  col- 
onies. 

When  a  society  begins  to  develop  class  antagonisms, 
it  is  a  sign  that  it  has  reached  a  point  where  independent 
existence  is  possible.  It  has  begun  to  have  a  social  life 
and  method  of  growth  of  its  own.  If  it  is  a  colony,  it  has 
arrived  at  a  critical  stage  where  only  a  slight  jar  will  be 
needed  to  start  separatist  tendencies. 

We  have  traced  each  of  the  main  groups  of  colonies 
up  to  the  point  where  this  independent  evolution  was 
in  progress.  For  a  period  their  history  has  much  in 
common,  and  can  therefore  be  best  treated  as  a  whole. 

'  Isiiac  Sharplcss,  "Two  Centuries  of  Pennsylvania  History-,"  pp.  126, 
142-14,?,  IS4-155.  There  were  similar  uprisings  in  other  colonies.  Those 
of  Davis  and  Pate  in  Maryland  and  of  the  "  KcKulalors  "  in  the  Carolinas 
arc  the  most  imiiorlanl  of  those  not  mentioned  in  the  text. 


^\L 


.y;.^;^^!: 


CHAPTER   V 


GROWTH  OF   SOLIDARITY 


The  close  of  the  seventeenth  century  saw  the  center 
of  colonial  life  quite  thoroughly  transplanted  to  America. 
None  of  the  principal  colonies  had  any  essential  pon  ion 
of  their  industrial  life  across  the  Atlantic.  They  still 
imported  much,  but  they  imported  it  in  their  own  vessels, 
and  under  the  control  and  for  the  profit  of  their  own 
merchants,  and  not  as  a  part  of  European  commerce. 

The  colonies  were  everywhere  drawing  closer  together. 
This  was  true  in  the  simple  geographical  sense.  The 
appearance  of  boundary  disputes  in  a  half  dozen  places 
is  significant  that  populations  were  now  approaching 
each  other  and  that  each  colony  was  no  longer  a  small 
settlement  surrounded  by  miles  of  wilderness.  The 
settlement  of  one  of  these  boundary  disputes  marked  a 
line  that  was  to  run  with  sinister  significance  through  a 
succeeding  century  of  American  history.  This  was  the 
line  between  Pennsylvania  and  Maryland,  which  was 
carefully  and  ceremoniously  surveyed  and  marked  by 
two  Enghsh  surveyors  in  1767,  from  whom  it  took  the 
name  of  "Mason  and  Dixon's  Line." 

Household  industry  had  developed  to  the  point  where 
each  colony  was  well-niph  self-supporting,  so  far  as  the 
principal  necessities  of  life  were  concerned.  A  laboring 
class,  divorced  from  land  and  capital,  had  appeared  in 
each  of  the  colonies.     In  the  South  this  was  composed 

55 


'■\ 


S6 


SOCIAL    FOkCCS    IN    AMERICAN    IIISTORV 


largely  of  ncgn)  chattel  slaves.  These  had  been  brought 
over  by  the  thousands  by  the  traders  of  New  ami  old 
England.  Nearly  all  the  cohjnies  at  some  time  or  an- 
other opi)osed  the  importation  of  slaves,  but  their  im- 
portation was  a  profitable  business  for  the  mother  coun- 
try, and  she  would  not  listen  to  any  restrictive  i)ro[)osals. 
Indeed,  by  the  agreement  called  the  "  Asiento,"  signed  at 
the  treaty  of  Utrecht  in  1713,  the  slave  trade  was  con- 
fined to  a  mono()oly  controlled  by  Queen  Anne  and  her 
royal  successors  and  court  favorites.  After  that,  all 
the  power  of  the  British  government  was  used  to  push 
this  traffic. 

In  the  Middle  colonics  the  laboring  population  was 
composed  largely  of  "indentured  servants"  and  others 
who  were  in  a  more  or  less  open  form  of  slaver}-.  In  New 
England  these  forms  were  also  found,  and  here  there  were 
also  considerable  numbers  of  wageworkcrs. 

The  principal  highway  of  commerce  was  along  the 
coast,  and  with  increasing  population  and  diversity  of 
productions  the  coast  cities  were  much  more  closely  con- 
nected with  each  other  than  with  the  "back  country" 
of  their  own  colony. 

Population  increased  with  great  rapidity  during  the 
first  half  of  the  eighteenth  century.  In  1700  there  were 
about  250.000  people  in  the  thirteen  colonies.  By  1750 
the  population  had  increased  to  i  ,3; 0,000.'  This  increase 
of  population  was  forcing  settlement  back  from  the  sea- 
coast,  and  it  was  even  beginning  to  flow  down  into  the 
Ohio  Valley.  These  "back-country"  settlements  were 
coming  into  close  proximity,  and  were  finding  many 
common  interests. 

'  R.  a.  Ihwailcs,  "The  Colonies,"  pp.  265-266. 


lit*. 


^.^tr 


GROWTH    OF   SOI.IDAKITV 


57 


The  establi>hmc'nt  oi  a  crude  postal  system  in  1O93 
(lid  much  to  unify  colonial  life.  This  system  be^an 
unfler  private  control,  but  was  placed  under  royal  man- 
agement in  1707.  In  1737,  lienjamin  Franklin  was 
made  colonial  postmaster-general,  and  continued  in  that 
l).)Miion  until  the  outbreak  of  the  Revolution.  During 
this  time  the  system  was  extended  to  Canada  and  regular 
mail  routes  established  between  the  principal  cities. 

Kvery  Indian  outbreak  drove  the  colonies  closer  to- 
gether. Of  even  greater  importance  as  a  unifying  force 
was  the  series  of  wars  between  Kngland  and  various 
nations  of  continental  Europe.  The  colonies  were 
always  involved  in  these  wars,  since  both  France  and 
Spain,  who  were  arrayed  against  England,  had  colonies 
on  the  American  continent.  In  the  War  of  the  Austrian 
Succession,  the  Xew  England  colonists  litted  out  an 
expedition  that  captured  Louisburg,  in  French  Canada. 
Tliis  was  supposed  to  be  an  impregnable  fortress,  and 
the  fact  that  it  fell  before  colonial  troops  gave  a  feeling 
of  self-coni'ldence  that  was  to  develop  into  one  of  inde- 
pendence. 

The  Imal  grapple  between  France  and  England  for 
the  mastery  of  the  commercial  world  came  in  what  was 
known  in  .\merica  as  the  "French  and  Indian  War," 
ending  in  1763.  In  America  this  war  was  waged  for  the 
possession  of  the  Mississippi  Valley.  The  pressure  of  an 
increasing  population,  that  had  crowded  the  colonies 
together  until  they  were  quarreling  over  boundary  lines, 
had  become  so  great  that  it  was  at  last  breaking  over  the 
mighty  barrier  of  the  AUeghenies.  But  here  it  was 
meeting  with  contlicting  claims  of  sovereignty.  France 
liau  bcL-n  sLiidiiig  hei  c.x[jluiXTs  all  up  and  down  the  tribu- 


|i 


58 


SOCIAI.    lOKCF.S    I\    AMKRIC.W    MIMORY 


taries  of  the  Mississippi  and  the  St.  Lawrence,  and  she 
claimed.  h\-  virtue  of  their  discoveries  and  subsequent 
occupation  by  an  army  of  fur  traders,  all  this  great  inland 
emi)ire. 

Coming  from  the  Atlantic  side,  the  key  to  this  territory 
lies  at  the  point  where  the  AIIegher\  and  Monong.diela 
rivers  meet  to  form  the  Ohio,  and  where  the  city  of  Pitts- 
burg now  stands.' 

Virginia  and  Pennsylvania  land  speculators  were 
already  plotting  this  country,  and  when  France  suddenly 
sci/.ed  the  gateway  to  the  Ohio  and  erected  a  fort  on  the 
present  site  of  Pittsburg.  England  promptly  protested.  As 
her  messenger  t  ucar  this  protest  she  chose  a  young  sur- 
veyor, who  had  been  using  his  position  to  the  advan- 
tage of  the  land  companies  with  which  he  was  just  be- 
ginning to  be  connected,  and  in  which  his  brother  was 
a  prominent  figure.  The  name  of  this  surveyor  was 
George  Washington.  His  efforts  to  persuade  the  French 
to  leave  were  in  vain;  and  when  war  broke  out  and  Brit- 
ish soldiers  were  sent  to  America  he  was  chosen  to  co- 
operate with  the  regulars  under  General  Rraddock  in 
an  attack  upon  Fort  Duquesne. 

The  result  of  that  attack  was  to  add  greatly  to  colonial 
self-confidence.  Braddock  refused  to  accept  the  advice 
of  the  trained  Indian  fighters  who  accompanied  him, 
and  moved  on  through  the  wilderness  with  all  the  pomp 
and  ceremony  of  an  English  parade  ground.  Naturally 
he  was  ambushed,  and  when  he  tried  to  meet  the  craftiest, 
wilderness  fighters  the  world  has  ever  known  with  the 
tactics  of  the  European  martinet,  hi-  forces  were  well- 
nigh  annihilated.    The  man  who  reaped  what  honors  were 

«  Frederick  .\.  Ogg,  "The  Opening  of  the  Mississippi,"  p.  251. 


'T.i-  m — -^"  r  -iMTmn  rt  i-ti-~j- 


ROWTH   OF   SOLIDARITY 


59 


If^ 


gained  that  day  was  Washington,  wlio,  with  the  trainnl 
frontier  figl  'crs,  covered  the  retreat  of  the  British  regu- 
lars and  prevented  a  wljolesale  massacre.  It  did  not 
take  long  for  the  story  of  how  untrained  frontiersmen 
outfought  British  regui.irs  to  spread  throughout  the 
(olonies.  The  result  wa>  to  take  away  the  halo  of  invin- 
cibihty  that  had  surrounded  these  troops  and  to  replace 
it  with  son\ethi;ig  Hke  contemi  I. 

The  growth  of  economic  unity  and  the  appearance  of 
military  necessiiy  caused  many  plans  to  be  set  forth 
for  the  jjolitical  unity  of  the  colonies.  Some  of  these, 
as  the  Xew  Kngiancl  Confederation  of  i()43  to  16O0, 
•"ere  quite  fully  organized.  Others,  as  Leisler's  plan  of 
union  in  1690.  and  William  Penn'>  in  1697,  never  reached 
farther  than  the  theoretical  stage.  There  were  several 
attempts  at  union  on  the  part  of  royal  goverr  )rs.  The 
main  unifying  etTcct  of  these  officials,  however,  was  in- 
direct and  unintended.  The  common  hostility  to  them 
on  the  part  of  the  \  arious  colonies  tended  to  create  a 
b<'nd  of  sympathy  that  was  to  prove  o'  value  as  a  basis 
of  a  hostile  movement  against  England  at  the  time  of 
the  Revolution. 


CHAPTER    VI 

CAISKS    OK    Tin:    KKVOLrilON 

By  the  middle  of  the  oiKhtcenth  century  American 
society  hiul  its  own  industrial  l)asis.  It  had  also  devel- 
oi)e(l  its  own  political  structure  to  correspond  to  this 
industrial  base.  In  the  course  of  this  development  the 
interests  of  the  ruling  classes  of  America  and  Kn^land 
had  prown  antagonistic. 

The  industrial  revolution  was  in  full  swinjj  in  England. 
The  steam  engine,  the  j)ower  loom,  the  spinning  jenny, 
and  other  great  basic  revolutionary  inventions  were  just 
taking  form.  The  French  and  Indian  War  had  laid  the 
foundation  of  British  imperial  capitalism.  It  had  given 
England  dominion  over  India  as  well  as  Canada,  and  had 
raised  Prussia  to  the  dominant  position  which  made  pos- 
sible modern  (jermany. 

This  war  had  been  conducted  that  English  markets 
might  be  extended,  that  gold  might  flow  to  the  mother 
country,  in  short,  that  the  just  arising  capitalist  class 
might  prosper.  The  economic  theory  accepted  by  those 
who  controlled  British  industry  and  government  was 
what  has  been  called  the  "Mercantile  System."  Ac- 
cording to  this  theory  one  of  the  great  objects  of  govern- 
ment .vas  to  pass  laws  that  would  insure  a  favorable 
"balance  of  trade."  For  this  purpose  legislation  was 
shaped  with  a  view  of  making  the  mother  countrv  the 
manufacturing  center  to  which  all  other  countries  sent 

60 


rut.v. 


mr'mm^ 


':^M^'^3s:£^:^i;d^T:'j^ai^--  ^i<^mM 


cwsiy.  or  iiii;  riaoi.ition 


6 1 


raw  niaterials.  and  from  whiili  lluy  were  fi>rii'(I  to  buy 
manufac  turtd  artiilfs  Colonit-s,  in  |)arti\  i.Iar,  wt-re 
cxpi'i  led  to  buy  all  the  thin^-'s  they  nci-did  of  the  mother 
(Kuntry.  This  theory,  backed  by  the  interests  of  the 
rulinji  ( Ia>>s  of  Kn^land.  is  the  explanation  of  the  Xavij,M- 
tjoii  Laws,  whiih  are  toninion!}  ^iven  as  one  of  the  prin- 
cipal causes  of  the  ke\<)lulion. 

The  recent  war  had  left  ICn^'land  with  a  crushinp  debt. 
This  was  an  added  reason  for  seekin|i;  to  raise  revenue  in 
Anuriia  and  for  confining  American  trade  to  British  ports. 

Kach  of  tlie  colonies  had  some  especial  interest  that 
came  into  sharp  coniliet  with  the  actions  of  the  British 
government.  Xew  Kngland,  the  head  and  frcmt  of  the 
Revolution,  had  many  very  serious  grif'vances.  although 
some  of  them  would  hardly  be  looked  upon  as  purely 
patriotic  by  those  who  fix  opinions  in  present  society. 
We  have  already  seen  how  completely  Xew  Kngland  was 
dominated  by  commercial  and  fishing  interests.  Her 
"great  men"  were  all  merchants.  But  their  trade  was 
not  conducted  in  a  manner  that  is  commonly  supposed  to 
carry  social  preeminence.  David  H.  Wells,  in  his  article 
on  '■Americ;'.n  Merchant  Marine"  in  Lalor's  ''Encyclo- 
pedia of  Tolitical  and  Social  Science,"  describes  these 
merchants  and  their  trade  as  follows :  — 

"Xine-tenths  of  their  merchants  were  smugglers. 
One  (juarter  of  all  the  signers  of  the  Declaration  of  Inde- 
I)endence  were  bred  to  commerce,  the  command  of  ships, 
and  the  contraband  trade.  Hancock,  Trumbull  (Brother 
Jonathan),  and  Hamilton  were  all  known  to  be  cognizant 
of  contraband  transactions,  and  approved  of  them.  Han- 
cock was  the  prince  of  contraband  traders,  and,  with 
John  Adams  as  his  counsel,  was  appointed  for  trial  before 


62 


S(JL'IAL   FORCKS   IX   AMLRIC.VN   HISTORY 


the  admiralty  court  of  Boston,  at  the  exact  hour  of  the 
shedding  of  blood  at  Lexington,  in  a  suit  for  $500,000 
penalties  alleged  to  have  been  incurred  by  him  as  a 
smuggler." 

Like  all  smugglers,  Hancock  cared  little  for  the  forms 
of  law,  and  trusted  to  bribery  and  vif  'ence  to  secure  his 
ends.  When  his  slooj).  Liberty,  was  endeavoring  to  run 
the  customs,  he  first  tried  to  bribe  the  officials,  and,  this 
failing,  locked  up  the  guard  in  a  cabin  and  unloaded  the 
sloop  under  the  protection  of  a  gang  of  thugs  secured  for 
the  occasion.' 

For  many  years  this  smuggling  had  been  winked  at 
by  British  officials.  The  smugglers  were  not  averse  to 
dividing  their  profits  to  a  limited  extent  with  complaisant 
officials,  and  England  was  a  long  way  olT  in  the  days  of 
sailing  vessels.  Even  in  England  there  had  been  a 
la.xity  in  the  enforcement  of  smuggling  laws,  which  now 
suddenly  ceased.  In  England  enforcement  of  the  laws 
caused  little  more  than  a  suppressed  grumbling.  In 
America  it  led  to  rioting  and  then  to  revolution. 

In  America  the  suppression  of  smuggling  meant  the 
suppression  of  the  commercial  life  of  New  England.  We 
have  already  seen  that  one  of  the  principal  items  of  com- 
merce was  the  famous  three-cornered  rum-molasses- 
slaves  trade.  One  of  the  first  of  the  new  taxes  was  a 
prohibitive  tariff  on  the  molasses  from  which  the  rum 
was   made. 

Those  citizens  of  New  England  who  were  not  concerned 
with  commerce  v.Tre  generally  interested  in  fishing,  and 
here  again  the  new  legislation  struck  fatal  blows.     The 

'  Charles  Stcdman,  "The  Ilisfon,'  of  the  Origin,  ProRress,  and  Ter- 
mination of  the  American  War,"  London,  1794,  Vol.  I,  p.  63. 


s? 


mm 


-^^mi.msSr'%: 


CAusns  OF  Tin:  ri:v(jlution' 


63 


trade  with  southern  Europe  was  forbidden,  and  for  a 
time  the  \ew  Kn;,'Iand  fishers  were  not  permitted  to  use 
chc  Xewfoundhmd  Hanks. 

Another  important  and  profitable  article  of  smuggled 
'ommerce  was  tea.  This  was  brought  from  HoHand. 
4cre  the  interests  of  the  English  governing  classes  came 
into  direct  and  sharp  conllict  with  the  American  smug- 
glers. The  East  India  Company  had  a  monopoly  of  the 
tea  trade.  This  company  was  owned  by  court  favorites. 
It  was  threatened  with  bankruptcy.  It  had  17,000,000 
pounds  of  tea  stored  in  English  warehouses.  On  this  it 
was  rec|uired  to  pay  a  shilling  a  pound  before  it  could 
sell  it  in  England.  The  English  government  proposed  a 
scheme  by  which  this  tea  could  be  sold  in  America  for 
less  than  it  would  cost  the  Englishmen  who  paid  the  local 
tax. 

The  orthodox  schoolbook  histories  assure  us  that  this 
otTer  of  cheap  tea  to  Americans  was  an  attempt  to  ''bribe 
a  nation,"  and  that  the  Americans  indignantlv  rejected 
the  bribe  and  threw  the  tea  into  Boston  Harbor  in  de- 
fense of  a  i)rincii)le.  This  high-minded  rejection  of  a 
bribe  by  John  Hancock,  the  man  who  was  mainly  re- 
sponsible for  the  famous  Boston  Tea  Party,  is  scarcely 
in  accord  with  what  we  have  learned  of  his  character. 
The  fact  is  that  had  the  tax  not  been  reduced  there  would 
have  been  little  objection.  It  was  the  reduction  itself 
and  not  the  princii)le  which  raised  the  famous  riot.  So 
long  as  the  East  India  Company  was  compelled  to  pay 
the  English  tax,  the  American  smugglers  could  undersell 
it  and  were  not  worried  about  questions  of  taxation,  or 
patriotism.  But  when  the  tax  was  rebated  the  East 
India   Company  could   undersell   the  smugglers.     This 


64 


SOCIAL   FORCES   IX  AMF.RICAX   HISTORY 


(Ic^lnncd  the  profit  in  srni!<,'t,'Iins,  something  infinitclv 
more  effective  in  cheekinj,'  that  crime  than  a  whole  tleet 
of  gunboats.  Xo  wonder  that  Hancock  whose  popuhir 
title  was  the  "prince  of  smugglers."  called  a  mass  meeting 
and  with  the  aid  of  Samuel  Adams  organized  that  glorious 
mob  that  dumped  the  tea  in  Boston  Harbor  and  started 
the  Revolution,       at  least,  so  the  textbooks  tell  us. 

In  the  Middle  colonies  there  was  another  specific 
grievance  in  addition  to  the  fact  that  their  trade  with  the 
West  Indies,  upon  which  they  depended  for  specie,  was 
interfered  with  when  smuggling  was  restricted.  New 
York  and  Pennsylvania  had  at  least  the  beginnings  of  a 
manufacturing  industry.  Bishop,  in  his  "History  of 
American  Manufactures,"  assures  us  that,  "Even  at  the 
present  day,  many  countries  which  were  reckoned  ciders 
in  the  family  of  nations  ere  the  ring  of  the  ax  was  heard 
in  the  forests  of  America,  arc  essentially  less  independent 
in  regard  to  some  products  of  manufacture  than  were 
the  American  colonies  at  the  time  of  the  Revolution." 

According  to  the  theory  of  the  mercantile  system, 
these  budding  manufactures  were  injurious  to  the  mother 
country,  except  as  the  product  was  used  by  the  makers, 
and  laws  forbidding  them  were  passed  by  the  British 
Parliament.  There  is  little  evidence  that  the  laws 
against  manufacturing  were  ever  enforced,  but  the  fact 
that  the  long  disused  smuggling  acts  were  now  being 
revived  showed  the  possibility  of  similar  action  in  regard 
to  other  laws. 

There  was  another  grievance  which  the  Middle  colonies 
shared  with  the  South  and  which  was  much  more  im- 
portant. In  these  two  sections  population  was  already 
pressing  toward  the  West.     There  had  been  a  rapid  in- 


t      ! 


J.. 


CAUSES   OF  Tin:    KI;\()LlTIU.\ 


6s 


crease  in  the  number  of  slaves  in  Uic  South  and  of  workers 
in  the  Mitldle  colonies.  As  a  result,  western  lands  were 
becominj,'  valuable,  and  men  prominent  in  colonial  life 
were  already  deeply  involved  in  western  land  schemes. 

Here  again  Knglish  olVaials  came  into  direct  conllict 
with  the  interests  of  the  dominant  class  in  the  colonics. 
Circat  fur  trading  comj)anies  had  been  organized  by 
English  merchants,  and  these  .ompanies  naturally  op- 
posed western  settlement.  Furthermore,  it  was'  w.ll 
recognized  that  the  closer  the  colonies  were  kept  to  liu- 
-seaboard,  the  easier  they  could  be  controlled. 

The  Fn.nch  and  Indian  War  had  been  prec  ipitatc.l 
largely  by  the.se  land  speculators.'     Thev  embraced  the 
mo>t  prominent  men  in  the  colonies.     Washington  was 
especially  active  along  this  line.     He  had  used  his  i)osi- 
tion  as  royal  surveyor  to  locate  lands  within  the  limits 
whi(  h  he  wa--  sui)i)osed  to  preserve  from  settlement.     He 
had   heli)ed   to   maintain   what   would    now  be  called   a 
"land  lobby"  in  London   to  push  his  schemes.     When 
Tarliament.  by  the  Quebec  .\ct.  extended  the  jurisdiction 
of  C\inada  over  the  western  country.  h\<  interests  were 
directly  threatened,  and    had    the  Revolution   noc   c> 
curred.  he  would  have  lost  some  30,000  acres  of  land.     It 
would  be  foolish  to  say  that  Washington  became  a  revo- 
lutionist because  of  his  western  land  interests.     On  the 
other  hand,  it  has  been  worse  than  foolish  to  depict  him 

'  H.ThT)  H.  Adanw,  -.Maryland's  Innuenre  uf^.n  I.an-i  C.^Hon.  "  in 
John^  Ilophns' l-nhrrsity  Studir.  /.,  Ili.torv  ami  PMicd  Snnue  \<A 
II.  ;  \\.n.or,  "Westward  .Movement,-  „p.  ,,  .„  ;  Sumn,  r,  "The  Finan- 
-HT.an,!  I-inan.esof  the  Kev„luli„n."  Vn|  H,  chr.p.  XX\n[.  .'OM 
S.u.h  r.oa.let.,"  N-os.  ,6,.-,  „  ,;  „u„,,  ..i.jfenf  .Madi^.n,"  p,.   y,  so- 

•^      .U.,n,;F,fe,.,ndT=mes.fThom.a.JefTew,n,'-pp.,so-t5^;S<h^^^^^^^^ 
Hi>tory  „!  I  n.ted  Mates,"  Vol,  I.  pp.  2,6-2.8. 


66 


SOCIAL  FOKCKS    I\   AMKKICW    HISTORY 


as  a  wholo-soulcd  superman  unmoved  by  iiuman  con- 
siderations. 

'Ihere  was  another  cause  which  was  more  widespread 
than  any  of  these,  and  which  undoubtedly  did  more  to 
make  the  Revolution  a  popular  movement  than  any  one 
of  those  previously  mentioned.  This  was  the  paper 
money  question.  With  regard  to  England  all  the  col- 
onies were  debtors,  and  throughout  history  the  debtor 
class  has  sought  to  depreciate  the  currency. 

All  the  colonies  had  issued  pa|)er  money  in  large  quan- 
tities. In  all  save  Pennsylvania  it  had  greatly  depre- 
ciated in  value.  In  some  colonies  it  had  become  prac- 
tically valueless,  and  there  had  been  successive  issues,  or 
"tenors,"  as  they  were  called,  each  of  which  had  been 
used  to  redeem  the  i)revious  one,  and  all  of  which  were 
almost  equally  worthless.  The  English  merchants  who 
did  business  in  the  colonies  were  compelled  to  accept  this 
paper  money  in  jiayment  for  the  goods  they  sold,  as  all 
of  the  colonies  had  enacted  most  stringent  laws  enforcing 
the  legal  tender  character  of  the  bills. 

This  antagonism  reached  a  climax  at  the  close  of  the 
French  and  Indian  War.  The  British  merchants  had 
Gent  over  large  quantities  of  goods  during  this  war,  and 
were  now  pressing  for  settlement  in  something  besides 
the  depreciated  paper  money.  The  British  Parliament 
backed  them  up  in  this  demand,  and  enacted  a  law  for- 
bidding further  paper  money  issues  in  the  Xew  England 
cokinics,  and  restricting  them  or  providing  for  early 
prohibition    in    the   others. 

This  action  served  to  bring  an  entirely  new  set  of  sup- 
porters to  the  cause  of  the  Revolution.  Pa[)er  money 
had  already  been  a  cause  for  continuous  quarrels  within 


CAUSKS   OF  Tin:   K I, VOLUTION- 


67 


the  colonies.     The  wealthy  crc.iitor  ch.ss  had  opposed 
the  j.apcT  money,  and  the  country  ddn.,r  class  ha.j  fax  ored 
•t.     Klect...ns    {..r   the    colonial    legislatures    had  turned 
upon  this  i.suc.  and  the  country  districts  with  their  debtor 
["'I'ul.uon  had  been  aImo>t  univcrsallv  victorious      This 
ha<l  al.sc,  been  true  of  the  Southern  colonies,  which  were 
little  alTected  by  the  Xavi^ation  Acts  and  the  laws  re- 
stricting manufacture.'     Xow  all  the  tierce  partisanship 
that  had  often  broken  out  in  riots  against  the  '•{,luto- 
crats       .f  tlK    coast  cities  was  skillfully  turned  against 
the    British   government.     The   orthodox   histories   say 
very    little    about    this    point,    although    contemporary 
writers,  and  esi,ecially  English  ones.  i)Iace  it  almost  in 
he  front  rank  of  causes  of  the  Rev<,lution.     Those  who 
haxe  written  our  histories  have  been  controlled  largely 
''.v  nnl.tor  class  sympathies,  and  they  are  m,t  particularly 
proud  o_t  the  fact  that  one  of  the  i)rime  causes  of  the 
Revolution  was  the  desire  of  a  large  number  of  the  colo- 
nists to  escape  paying  their  debts. 

It  was  especially  easy  to  manipulate  the  paper  money 
sentiment  into  revolutionary  action.  In  nearly  every 
colony  the  legislative  council,  chosen  bv  a  more  or  less 
popular  vote.  W..S  controlled  by  the  debtor  class  and  was 
''^  ^>  I-rpetual  nght  with  the  royal  governor.     This  light 

usuallv  took  on  a  form  tlv.i   ,•■-♦.       1  • 

-  "       ''"-m  that  1^  .tronirly  sugge>l!ve  of  a 

--  opera  plot.     Lach  year  the  legislature  would  pre- 

Pan-  certain  laws  providing  for  paper  monev,  western 

j;xten...on,  protection  against  the  Indians,  or  s'.mie  other 

l'"^-  ">  action  to  which  there  wa.  royal  objection.     Then 

'  Tlii^i^  irctf.l  in  lull  in  the  thesis  '•Ili.t..rv,,f  [•  •    -ri.       , 

'->'"i-  •"  1— n.i,   ,-„n,li,i.,n."    ,;  Mv/     '•''"'"''    ^^^'^^^ '" 


68 


SOCIAL   FORCKS    I\    A.MI-RICAX    HISTORY 


the  governor  would  veto  the  laws.     The  le-islalure  would 
then   refuse   to   vole   the  governor's  suiary.     He  would 
haggl*'  with  them  until  his  funds  gave  out  or  their  desire 
for  legislation  was  satisfied.     Then  he  would   sign   the 
laws  agreed  upon  and  would  receive  his  salary.     Over 
and  over  again  in  almost  every  colony  this  process  was 
rei)eated.     The   British   government   constantlv   sought 
to  find  some  method  by  which  the  governor's  salary  would 
be  assured  without  this  bargain  and  sale  proce.s.s.     The 
colonists  steadfastly  opi)osed  all  proposals  to  {xiy  him 
from  any  income  save  the  colonial  treasury  controlled  by 
the  legislature. 

This  i)erennial  haggling  had  naturally  divided  the 
colonists  into  two  parties,  one  of  which  clung  to  the  gov- 
ernor, while  the  other  followed  the  legislative  body.  As 
the  governor  was  the  representative  of  the  king,  it  was 
easy  to  turn  the  adherents  of  the  legislative  body  into 
revolutionists. 

These  legislatures  constituted  the  germs  of  an  inde- 
pendent government.  For  the  colonists  they  were  the 
government  which  repre.senled  colonial  interests.  When 
the  industrial  life  of  the  colonies  had  reached  the  point 
where  its  ruling  class  needed  a  government  to  further  its 
interests,  that  government  was  ready  to  its  hand  in  the 
colonial  legislatures. 

The  Stamp  Act.  which  provided  for  the  collection  of 
money  by  a  stamp  to  be  placed  upon  all  business  papers, 
was  hated,  not  so  much  because  it  was  "taxation  without 
representation,"  as  because  it  provided  that  the  funds 
obtained  through  its  oi)eration  should  be  used  for  the 
payment  of  the  salaries  of  the  royal  governors.  If  this 
were  done,  there  would  be  an  end  to  the  bargain  and  sale 


CAUSKS   OF  THL   RKVOLLTIOX 


69 


method  of  securing  the  governor's  signature.     Tins  meant 
that  paper  n.oney  could  no  :  mger  Ix-  i.sue.l,  and  that 
>tay  laws."  which  prevented   the-  colk-cticm  of  debts 
could  no  longer  he  enacted. 

Parliament  not  only  forbade  the  issue  of  paper  money 
'ut  aggravated  the  situation  by  passing  the  Navigation 
^aws  at  the_.same  time.     These  closed  the  West  India 
trade,  the  prmcipal  source  of  colonial  specie 

At  every  point  the  industrial  life  of  the  colonies  had 
reached  tne  stage  where  it  was  hampered  and  restricted 
J)y  ,ts  connection  with  England.     Large  classes  of  the 
l>"l>ulation_  required    an    independent    government    to 
further  the.r  mterests.     Evolution  along  the  lines  already 
drawn  could  proceed  only  with   in<lependence.     Those 
who  stood  for  independence  were  the  most  energetic  and 
•ar-s.ghted  among  the  colonists.     In  these  great  basic 
facts  and  fundamental  conflicts  of  interest  do  we  hnd  the 
causes  of  the  Revolution,  and  not  in  pettv  quarrels  over 
insignilicant  taxes  and  abstract  principles  of  politics 


11! 


CHAPTER    VII 

THE   REVOLUTIO.V 

.'  |Mr    of  ,he  v,„lont  upheaval  of  society  bv  >vhi,  I    ,tl 
ca,..a,,st  da.  overthrew  feuCa,™  and  can^  h   ,  ^ l^'; 

''■Ko  ha„  «a,-„.!i^ "  X  r:;/',r^"Th'r """  """- 

-^•k".«  ."  push  .his  reaclL      i,     unh^'-^  '^/"[f  ^^ 

''■:;--■ -He  .e,ese-,a;;:.:^o.:!X^^^^^^^^^^^^ 

"  •; ■■■"«■  a™;;:...: «;.':,'. i"';;:f:,;- ;■•'•:"■'" ^^-'■"la.: 

I'^'"I'l^-.  •  .   .  it  was  a  strife  l,c.u,>.n  ^       "■"'    '^^'"'•■*-'"    '«•« 

'  •"i-..un.r,V.  i„  one  par,      .n  if     7  ^'T''  "'^  -"---.ives  in 

party;  an,!  .,„...  .„■  ;,    ,     /jr  >      ,  '""^'"  '"/"'  "-""■--  'lecher 

--  not  a  ..n,.s,   he,  v  ^       .i     t;;'''"''""' '" ''--'--'a.cs  at  least. 


|!    i 


THE  RDVOMTro.V 

7' 

<IevcI„pcci   ca,,i.alisn,.   wc-rc  slruRKlinR     \r.,„,.  „,  ,. 
siipportcT,,  „f  ,h,  „|,|  merchant  ,1,7,     ■     ,  ' 

■n.rics  s„  tl,  ,1  ,1,    ii-i,  riinaim-(l  wjlh  the 

«'">h  sp™„«  ,„■.  ,i::2,  ai i  ,H;r.,r  ""■*  ':.""■ 

-.l.a„.,n,an.,rac.u...,,aUt;':;r^^ 
'1'-  i,a,    a  r..a,ly  |,,r„c,l  h„w  c„  ,|raw  ,„  th  n,* 
an.l  use  .„  lluir  interest  the  L-reu  ma.    „    .1     ,T 

"1  <»nu  .1  lew  Jocalities  was  the  f-.rtor,.  -f 

•^."  industria,  stages  from  froltie/' "      ,:"^:;  f,:;-,"'- 

pnmng  of  the  factory  system  existe,!      PI 

C..UI,,  no.  but  be  confuse,,  in  su"  a    „ci"  ",::  T'^ 

H....;.l^  expression    wouM   necessar.V   :™fo:n1  Z 

Pm,H-c,.  t,„g,,  prer„g,uye,  an,l  increase  of  the  r,,,:, 

-trr^:;::-r:-:-:^-..rests 

power.     Xcverth.Ip^    fi     t    •  cxtrci^e  a  royal 

-Ncxcrthclcxs.  the  7or.es  on  American  soil  were 


72 


SOCIAL   FORCFS    IV    AMLRIC.W    HISTORY 


at  all  times,  up  to  the  very  close  of  the  Rev<.Iution  fullv 
as  ..umerous  as  the  revolutionists,  an.l  their  jKirtisan's 
always  insist.-.l  that  they  were  in  a  Rreat  m.ijoritv  We 
hear  much  of  the  '-hireling  Hessians"  who,,.  the'lJriti^h 
brought  to  America;  but  which  of  our  textbooks  tell  us 
that  there  were  25.000  Americans  enlisted  in  the  British 
army,  or  that  at  many  time>  there  were  more  Ameri.  ans 
under  the  British  than  the  colonial  Hag? 

As  a  general  thing,  the  Tories  iii  America  came  fn.m 
some  of  the  following  classes  :   d)  the  personal,  political 
and  busmess  followers,  dependents,  and  frien<ls  of  the 
royal  governors;    (2)   the    nonsmuggling    merchants  of 
New  \  ork  and  the  Middle  colonies,  whose  interests  were 
bound  up  in  the  British  trade,  and  who  suffered  from  the 
competition  of  the  smugglers;   (3)  the  large  landholders 
of  the  same  states;    (4)  the  clergy  who  were  attached  to 
the  Church  of  Kngland,  ami  such  of  their  foll.nvers  as 
they  could  influence.     In  addition  to  all  these  more  or 
ess  active  classes  there  was  that  great  mass  of  the  popu- 
lation that,  having  no  direct  interests  at  stake  in  a  change 
remains  indifTerent.  or  clings  to  things  as  they  are.' 

Each  of  these  two  classes  extended  its  ties' across  the 
Atlantic,  and  some  of  the  most  etTective  blows  for  Amer- 
ican independence  were  struck  by  those  who  fought  on 
English  soil. 

When  we  come  to  consider  the  actual  fighting  of  the 
Revolution,  we  meet  with  many  facts  that  seem  to  be  of 
considerable  importance,  but  that  are  usually  omitted 

•Justin  Winsor,  "Xarrative  and  Criti.al  Flistorv  of  America."  Vol 

M   r'?'^     "";7'r'  '-'r"-'^  ='"•'  'hdr  Fonunc-,-  hy  (;e„r«c  K.  Kllis 
M    C  ^  r.vlcT.      The  K„yalist.  in  the  American  Revolution."  in  the    l,nr- 
Uiiii  Ili-t,ir:,il  Krcir,^     \"i>|     I-     \     f    i.-i;,  i.    ■.  i         i-        •     ».        ,       ' 
„  ,      ,.     ,.  .        .    ■'•  *'"•  '•     \'  *-•  Il'il^.     I.".\ali.-,m  in  .New  \ork,'' 
Columbia  Lniversity  Series,  Vol.  XIV,  No.  i. 


THE   KIAULl  riON 


73 


from  our  histories.  IVrhaps  this  is  explained  by  the 
>t.itenu-nt  of  S.  ().  Fisher  in  his  "  True  lli-iory  of  the 
Aiiurican  Revolution." 

"  Tlie  people  who  write  histories  arc  usually  oi  the  class 
wh..  take  the  side  of  the  government  in  a  revolution; 
and  as  Ameriians,  they  are  anxious  to  believe  that  our 
Kivolution  was  different  from  others,  more  deeorous.  and 
altogether  free  from  the  atrocities,  mistakes,  and  ab- 
surdities which  characterize  even  the  patriot  party  in  a 
revolution.  .  .  .  They  have  accordingly  tried  to  de- 
Mribe  a  revolution  in  which  all  scholarly,  reiined.  and 
(oiiHTvative  persons  nn'ght  have  unhesitatingly  taken 
part ;  but  such  revolutions  have  never  been  known  to 
hajjpen." 

The  truth  is  that  the  Revolution  was  to  a  large  extent 
started  and  maintained  through  methods  of  nKib  violence 
and  terrorism,  such  as  civilized  war  hardly  tolerates  to- 
day.    ( )ne  of  the  first  hostile  acts,  while  the  colonists  were 
still  loudly  r.rotesting  their  loyalty,  was  the  burning  of 
the  rev(nu'  frigate  (mspc,  that  had  very  foolishlv  and 
vyrannically  dared  to  interfere  with  the  regular  business 
of  the  New  Kngland  smugglers.     The  first  active  steps 
toward  org;  nized  re%-olution  consisted  in  the  formation 
el    "Comn.i  tees   of   Correspondence,"   a   sort   of   semi- 
secret  netwc  -k  of  consi)irators  extending  throughout  the 
c.'lonies.     This   body   had   its   headquarters   in   Boston, 
with  Samuel  Adams,  one  of  those  natu-al  organizers  and' 
agitators,  skilled  in  all  the  arts  of  arousing  the  masses 
that  have  ever  been  characteristic  of  popular  leaders.'    This 

■  J.  K.  Ilosmcr.  ".Sam  .Warns,  The  Man  of  the  Toun-.Meetinp  •'  in 
Joh,^  llnpkms  University  Studies  in  History  and  Politiral  S.inuc    ,.S,S4 
p.  34  :   "He  had  no  private  business  after  the  lirsl  years uf  hi.  manhood] 


m^ 


:  »i^  1^'''=^  tlLl^i^J^ 


MICROCOPY    RESOLUTION    TEST    CHART 

ANSI  a-,d  ISO  TEST  CHART  No    2 


|i^      illil  2.5 


tS   1'^ 


2.0 


MO 


1.8 


1.25  ; 


u 


1.6 


^  APPLIED  ^yHGE     Inc 

^=i  ''-'  E°^'  Ma-  Str„, 

^-_^  Rmhesle'.   N...   rori,        us    . 

"-=^  ''')««- 0300  -  Phont 

^^  e)  288 -5989 -Fa. 


!w^^^^m^mM^m^-:m^ 


74 


SOCIAL  FORCES   IN  AMERICAN   HISTORY 


chain  of  committees  early  took  up  the  work  of  terrorizing 
those  who  opposed  them.  The  story  of  the  methods 
used  to  accomplish  this  end  does  not  make  nice  reading. 
It  tells  of  the  whii)ping  of  unarmed  men  by  armed  mobs, 
of  the  wholesale  application  of  that  humorous  method 
of  torturing  which  is  peculiarly  American,  and  is  suj^posed 
to  have  originated  at  this  time,  tarring  and  feathering, 
and  riding  on  a  rail.  It  describes  the  burning  of  houses, 
the" confiscation "  of  proi)erty,  the  hanging  of  not  a  few, 
and  the  ai)plication  of  nearly  all  the  methods  of  mob 
violence  that  ingenuity  could  devise. 

One  of  the  weapons  which  was  most  v/idely  used,  both 
locally  and  nationally,  jjrivatcly  and  oOicially.  was  the 
boycott.  One  of  the  first  acts  of  the  fiist  session  of  the 
(  ontinental  Congress  was  to  declare  a  boycott  on  all 
English  goods.  This  was  two  years  before  the  Declara- 
tion of  Independence,  while  the  colonies  were  still  making 
a  great  parade  of  their  loyalty.  Yet  this  resolution  pro- 
vided not  simply  for  what  has  come  to  be  known  as  a 
"primary"  boycott  against  English  goods.  It  went  on 
to  describe  most  elaborately  the  methods  to  be  used  to 
enforce  a  boycott  upon  any  merchants  who  should  handle 
British  goods,  or  who  should  trade  with  England  in  any 
way.'  The  Committees  of  Correspondence  then  saw  to  it 
that  this  boycott  was  enforced,  and  they  worked  to  such 

was  the  public  servant,  simply  and  solely,  in  pliucs  Iar>:c  and  small.— 
firc-ward,  committee  to  sec  that  chimneys  were  .site,  I.ix-collcclor,  mod- 
erator of  t.•u•^-mcetin^,^  representative,  congressman,  Kovcmor.  One 
may  almost  call  him  the  creature  of  the  toun-meetinp.  His  development 
took  pla<  e  on  the  floor  of  Faneuil  Hall  and  ( )!d  South,  from  the  time  when 
he  -i,mh1  tluTc  as  a  master  f^nire;  and  -urh  a  ma-ter  ul  the  meti-.ods  by 
which  a  town-meeting  may  be  swayed  the  world  has  never  seen,"  etc, 
^  Journals  nf  tltr  Cniiliiiri,!.,!  C'^"  •'■•<■'    V'   1    ' ■^ 


S?^^^^^^^--viiM^"W%^^^ 


THE   REVOLUTION 


75 


good  effect  that  importations  from  England  fell  off  one 
half  almost  r .   )nce. 

When  the  statement  is  made  that  only  a  minority  of 
the  population  were  revolutionists,  the  question  naturally 
arises  as  to  how  this  minority  was  able  to  win  out.  The 
answer  is  found  in  the  fact  noted  by  every  writer  who  has 
studied  this  i)eri()(I  that  the  revolutionists  were  much 
more  active,  eflicient.  cohesive,  and  belligerent,  more 
conscious  of  their  aims  and  more  determined  in  their 
pursuit  than  any  other  portion  of  society."  This  is  an 
invariable  characteristic  of  a  rising  social  class.  The 
cajntalist  class  was  then  the  coming  class.  It  was  the 
class  to  whom  the  future  belonged.  It  was  the  class 
whose  victory  was  essential  to  progress.  The  Tories, 
with  their  adherence  to  the  royal  governors  and  to  the 
old  system  of  social  castes  and  legal  privileges,  were 
harking  back  to  an  already  dead  society.  They  had 
neither  ideas  nor  ideals  to  inspire  them.  The  economic 
system  to  which  they  belonged  was  already  crumbling 
into  the  dust  of  history. 

In  so  far  as  the  military  operations  on  American  soil 
are  concerned,  they  can  best  be  understood  if  we  recall 
the  geographical  features  of  the  Atlantic  coast.  Through- 
out history  the  strategic  line  of  attack  and  defense  on 
that  coast,  from  either  a  commercial  or  a  military  point 
of  view,  has  been  the  valley  of  the  Hudson.  If  the  Brit- 
ish could  occupy  this  valley,  rebellious  Xew  England 
would  be  cut  off  from  the  other  colonies,  and  a  base  of 
supplies  and  operations  created  from  which  other  mili- 

'  The  revolutionists  were  uImi  the  iirmed  and  tr.iinci  rinemcn  of 
society.  It  was  the  frontiersmen  who  captured  Hur^'oync,  won  the  ti.ittle 
of  king's  Mountain,  and  generally  furnished  the  fighters  at  critiuil  times. 


76 


SOCIAL   FORCES   IN   AMERICAN   HISTORY 


tary  movements  of  conquest  would  have  been  compara- 
ti\cly  easy.  Boston,  the  center  of  revolt,  and  Phila- 
delpliia,  the  largest  city,  could  have  been  occupied  almost 
at  will,  and  a  brief  raiding  e.\[)edition  would  have  sutliced 
to  have  subdued  the  Southern  colonies. 

At  the  ojiening  of  hostilities  Boston  was  already  oc- 
cujiied  by  a  British  army  under  (ieneral  (iage.  He  per- 
mitted a  portion  of  his  force  to  be  drawn  away  to  Lexing- 
ton in  the  elTort  to  destroy  the  military  stores  that  the 
colonists  had  accumulated,  and  saw  a  large  portion  of  this 
detachment  wi|)ed  out  by  a  guerrilla  attack.  Then 
came  the  occupation  of  Bunker  (or  Breed's)  Hill,  which 
commanded  Boston.  The  British  army  attacked  the 
American  intrenchments,  and  was  successful,  but  at  a 
terrible  cost.  However,  the  British  still  occupied  Boston, 
and  the  American  army  was  little  more  than  a  disor- 
ganized mob,  totally  incapable  of  conducting  any  elTec- 
tive  siege. 

At  this  moment  a  most  important  change  took  place 
in  the  command  of  the  British  troops.  General  Sir 
William  Howe  was  given  char;,e.  Tlie  important  fact 
about  General  Howe  was  that  he  was  a  most  intensely 
partisan  Whig,  and  that  he  had  been  one  of  the  strongest 
defenders  of  the  colonics  in  the  British  Parliament.  He 
was  absolutely  opposed  to  any  use  of  force  against  them  ; 
believed  them  to  be  in  the  right  and  entitled  to  victory. 
In  other  words,  the  work  of  conquering  the  colonists  was 
turned  over  to  a  man  who  was  anxious  that  they  should 
not  be  conquered. 

This  was  the  situation  when  George  Washington  was 
made  commander  in  chief  of  the  .\merican  forces.  He 
at  once  prepared  to  conduct  as  much  of  a  siege  of  Boston 


■^'■s'^^wm^w 


THE   REVOLUTION 


77 


as  was  possible.  He  had  an  army  without  guns,  am- 
munition (Bunker  Hill  was  lost  because  the  American 
ammunition  was  exhausted),  cannon,  or  even  food  and 
clothing.  Some  small  cannon  that  had  been  captured  by 
Ethan  Allen  at  Fort  Ticonderoga  were  hauled  by  the 
New  England  farmers  on  sleds,  and  at  last  preparations 
were  made  for  actual  hostilities. 

Howe's  conduct,  in  the  meantime,  had  been  most 
mysterious  if  we  consider  it  as  that  of  a  sincere  British 
general.  He  was  a  man  of  military  ability.  He  was 
lo'-ated  in  a  city  that  had  once  been  rendered  untenable 
by  the  occupation  of  a  hill  that  commanded  it.  It  is  a 
first  principle  of  military  tactics  that  all  elevations  com- 
manding a  position  must  be  occupied  if  the  position  is  to 
be  defended.  Yet  Howe  lay  in  Boston  all  winter  without 
occupying  Dorchester  Heights,  which  commanded  the 
city,  and  was  apparently  very  much  surprised  when 
Washington  at  last  took  the  hint  and  threw  up  some 
intrenchments  on  that  position.  Howe  then  discovered 
the  very  obvious  fact  that  his  position  in  Boston  was 
endangered.  He  had  plenty  of  ships  'a  the  harbor;  and 
the  aruUery  of  that  day  in  the  hands  of  such  artillery- 
men as  were  to  be  found  among  the  Continentals  was 
not  particularly  dangerous  to  a  retreating  army.  More- 
over, there  had  scarcely  been  a  time  during  the  previous 
winter  when  he  could  not  have  completely  routed  the 
American  forces,  as  these  were  practically  without  am- 
munition. 

Then,  at  a  time  when  the  Revolution  was  languishing 
for  lack  of  the  munitions  of  war,  when  New  York  was 
unguarded  at  the  mouth  of  the  Hudson,  Howe  sailed 
away  to  Halifax,  leaving  behind  him  over  two  hundred 


78 


SOCIAL  FORCES    IN   AMERICAN  IIISK;,  V 


cannon,  several  tons  of  powder,  and  a  great  stuck  of 
other  military  stores.  It  is  hard  to  conceive  of  any 
greater  service  he  could  have  extended  to  the  revolution- 
ary cause,  unless  he  had  marched  his  troops  directly 
into  Washington's  camp  and  turned  them  over  to  the 
American  general,  and  there  were  some  serious  obstacles 
in  the  way  of  doing  this.  Is  it  any  wonder  that  this 
auspicious  moment  was  seized  to  issue  the  Declaration 
of  Independence  ? 

A  few  days  before  that  declaration,  however.  General 
Howe  came  back  to  Xew  York,  which  he  occupied  with- 
out  resistance,   showing   that   his   trip   to   Halifa.x   was 
unnecessary.     He    was    accompanied    by    his    brother. 
Admiral  Howe,  who  was  equally  partisan  to  the  Ameri- 
can cau.se.     Here  General  Howe  sent  back  requests  for 
reenforcements,   which   were  promptly  sent  him,   until 
he  had  between  35,000  and  40,000  well  armed,  fed,  and 
disciplined  troops  with  which  to  fight  between  5000  and 
15,000  ragged,  ill-fed,  and  poorly  equipi)ed  soldiers  under 
Washington.     So  small  were  the  resources  of  the  Ameri- 
cans that  it  is  doubtful  if  their  military  supplies  would 
have  permitted  six  weeks  of  active  fighting  before  they 
would  have  been  completely  exhausted  and  scattered. 
But   Howe   conducted   no  active   campaign.      On    the 
contrary,  he  was  careful  never  to  follow  up  any  advan- 
tage which  he  gained.     He  would  defeat  the  army  under 
Washington,  but  always  gave  ample  time  for  recupera- 
tion.    At  the  same   time  it  must   be  recognized   that 
Washington   showed   himself   a   brilliant   general,    fully 
capable  of  utilizing  all  the  opportunities  that  Howe  so 
kindly  gave  him. 
The  next  year,  1777,  brought  the  turning  point  of  the 


t 


.-..k 


THE   RF.VOLLTIOX 


79 


war.  The  British  occupied  Xew  York  with  many  more 
men  under  Howe  than  were  really  needed  to  hold  the 
position.  If  now  the  Hudson  \'alley  could  be  occupied 
throughout  its  length,  the  backbone  of  the  colonies  would 
be  broken.  Accordingly  Burgoyne  was  sent  down  from 
Canada,  by  way  of  Lake  Champlain.to  occupy  that  valley. 
General  Hcnvc  was  to  detach  some  of  his  superfluous 
troops  and  send  them  up  the  Hudson  to  meet  Burgoyne. 
Howe  did  not  do  this.  He  did  not  even  conduct  an  ener- 
getic campaign  against  that  portion  of  the  American 
army  which  was  near  him.  On  the  contrary,  he  was  so 
mild  in  his  efforts  that  the  Americans,  with  a  much 
smaller  force  than  Howe,  were  permitted  by  him  to  divide 
their  forces  and  to  send  a  portion  under  Gage  to  assist  in 
the  attack  upon  Burgoyne.  Under  these  circumstances 
the  latter  soon  found  himself  much  outnumbered,  in  a 
hostile  country,  without  supplies  and  no  prospect  of 
relief,  and  was  compelled  to  surrender. 

By  this  time  the  British  government  had  become 
thoroughly  aroused  to  the  attitude  of  Howe.  Criti- 
cisms of  him  became  so  sharp  that  he  resigned  and  went 
back  to  England,  where  he  was  the  subject  of  a  Parlia- 
mentary inquiry  that  developed  the  facts  as  set  forth. 
He  was  too  powerful  politically  to  be  punished,  but 
throughout  the  Revolution  the  favorite  toast  at  banquets 
of  .American  officers  was  "General  Howe";  but,  strange 
as  it  may  seem,  no  school  history  considers  these  facts 
worthy  of  mention. 

With  the  fall  of  Burgoyne  and  the  return  of  Howe  to 
England  the  war  took  on  a  ditTerent  aspect.  It  was  more 
rigorously  prosecuted  in  America,  so  much  so  that  at 
times  it  appeared  as  if  the  Revolution  would  tail  and 


8o 


SOCIAL   FfjRCKS   IX   A.MKRICAX   HISTORY 


become  only  a  rebellion.  Its  scope,  however,  had  wi- 
dened. The  old  commercial  rivals  of  England  had  joined 
hands  with  the  colonies.  France.  Spain,  and  Holland 
extended  aid  in  the  form  of  money,  munitions  (jf  war,  and 
even  troops  and  battleships.  Kngland,  beset  u[)on  all 
sides,  was  unable  to  send  the  troo[)s  that  were  needed, 
and  that  had  been  so  plentiful  when  Howe  was  playing 
at  war.  Cornwallis  was  hemmed  in  at  Vorktown  by 
the  allied  French  and  Continental  troops,  was  compelled 
to  surrender,  and  independence  was  assured. 


3,  .:■- 


CHAPTER   VIII 

FORMATION   OF   THE   GOVF.RVMENT 

The  surrender  of  Cornwallis  in  America  was  followed 
by  a  Whig  victory  in  Parliament.  On  the  27th  of  Feb- 
ruary, 17S2,  this  resolution  was  carried  in  the  House  of 
Commons :  — 

"  That  it  is  the  opinion  of  this  House  that  a  further 
prosecution  of  offensive  war  against  America  would, 
under  present  circumstances,  be  the  means  of  weakening 
the  efforts  of  this  country  against  her  European  enemies, 
and  tend  to  increase  the  mutual  enmity  so  fatal  to  the 
interests  both  of  Great  Britain  and  America." 

One  month  later  the  Tory  ministry  fell,  and  the  Eng- 
lish allies  of  the  American  army  came  into  power  in  the 
home  country.  In  some  ways  the  English  Whigs  were 
more  consistent  and  more  revolutionary  than  those  who 
had  fought  under  the  Continental  flag.  They  curbed 
the  power  of  the  king  and  the  House  of  Lords,  made  the 
House  of  Commons  supreme,  and  laid  the  foundations 
for  a  much  more  truly  democratic  government  than  this 
country  has  yet  enjoyed.  One  reason  for  this  is  to  be 
found  in  the  existence  in  England  of  a  powerful  landed 
interest  which  was  in  such  sharp  antagonism  to  the  rising 
industrial  capitalists  that  the  latter  felt  keenly  the  need 
of  continuous  curbing  of  their  opponents. 

No  such  condition  existed  in  America.  Here  the 
antagonism  of  classes  was  rather  between  the  industrial 

G  8i 


<^^^ 


82 


SOCIAL    FORCKS    IN    AMERICAN    HIST(JRV 


and  nitrcantilc  creditors  on  the  coast  and  the  farmer 
debtors  of  the  interior.  These  hitter  were  apt  to  make 
an  alliance  with  the  wa^eworkers  of  the  larger  cities, 
although  these  were  too  little  develoi)ed  to  play  an 
ini|)ortant  part.  Consequently  the  richer  class  in  the 
colonies  did  not  feel  the  need  of  any  democratic  mea.sures 
in  order  to  secure  allies  from  the  po(jrer  classes  in  a  fight 
against  a  crown  and  landed  nobility,  as  was  the  case  in 
England. 

We  see  the  effect  of  this  condition  in  the  character  of 
the  state  governments  formed  during  the  Revolution. 
Practically  all  of  these  were  supposed  to  be  modeled 
after  the  British  government.  Hut  there  was  an  im- 
portant difference.  Since  the  colonists  had  left  England 
the  crown  and  the  Hcjuse  of  Lords  had  ceased  to  hold 
a  dominant  position  in  the  English  government,  and  their 
importance  was  decreased  still  further  by  the  parlia- 
mentary conf]i(  t  which  was  being  waged  simultaneously 
with  the   Re\i     itionary  War  in  America. 

In  the  state  governments  which  were  formed  during 
the  war  to  take  the  place  of  the  old  colonial  establish- 
ments, the  second  chamber,  corresponding  to  the  House 
of  Lords,  was  given  equal  power  with  the  lower  House. 
Moreover,  this  upper  House,  instead  of  being  represen- 
tative of  a  iKirticular  form  of  property  relation,  and  that 
a  declining  one.  was  made  rejirescntative  of  property 
alone,  through  very  high  jiroperty  requirements  for 
membership  and  suffrage.  Properly  qualifications  for 
voting  were  characteristic  of  all  llie  state  constitutions 
adopted  during  the  Revolution,  with  the  single  exception 
of  Penns\lvania.  This  would  seem  to  show  that  all  the 
fine  talk  about  the  rights  o{  men  and  "taxation  without 


FORMATION-   OF  Till':   UOVKRVMKNT 


83 


rcprcscntalion"  and  "all  nun  arc  croatal  oqual"  was 
intended  only  to  secure  popular  support  with  which  to 
I)ull  some  very  hot  chestnuts  out  of  the  lire  for  the  ruling 
class  of  the  colonies. 

Ihe  nature  of  th-se  state  ^o\■ernnu•nts  ^ives  an  i.h'a 
of  the  i)olitical  forms  desired  by  ruling'  cla>:,  interests  at 
the  time  of  the  Revolution.  The  national  j^'overnment 
was  too  filmy  a  thinj;  to  tell  any  story  clearly.  And 
yet  it  is  pos.>ihle  that  this  very  indeliniteness  tells  an 
equally  clear  story,  for  it  corresponded  very  closely  to 
the  lack  of  a  ^t-'neral  industrial  life.  There  were  very 
few  interests  common  to  all  the  colonies,  and  these  few 
were  not  of  a  kind  to  overcome  the  immediate  separatist 
ones. 

At  the  outbreak  of  the  war  there  was.  of  course,  no 
central  government.  For  the  revolutionary  forces  its 
place  was  taken  by  the  conspiratory  "Comn-ittees  of 
Correspondence."  From  these  sprang  the  "Continental 
Congress."  which  took  to  itself  more  and  more  power  as 
the  Re\-oluti<)n  continued.' 

It  was  this  body  that  controlled  the  movements  of  the 
army,  gave  \Va>hington  his  commission,  declared  in- 
dependence, made  alliances  with  France.  Spain,  and 
Holland,  borrowed  money  and  pledged  the  credit  of  the 
combined  colonies  for  its  repa\ment.  issued  an  incon- 
vertible currency,  granted  letters  of  marque  and  reprisal, 
built  a  navy,  and  carried  on  peace  negotiations  when  the 
war  was  enrled.  Vet  this  body  had  no  legal  existence, 
no  detinite  i)owers.  none  of  the  things  which  are  supposed 
to  be  the  essential  foundation  of  a  legislative  body  until 
the  war  was  over  ifs  imrmrf.int  yort-  pomnlcf'^'r'  '•"->  •'»•• 

'  John  Fiske,  "The  Critical  I'criod  uf  American  Historj-,"  pp.  92-^3. 


^4 


sn(  lAI.    lOKCKS    I\    AMI.KICW    HISTokV 


life  ahoiit  to  end.  The  Artiilo  of  ( 'oiikiliratioii,  whiLh 
I'ur  tin-  I'lr^t  time  proNiKil  l\\v-^v  ihini;^.  wrn-  not  adoplc"! 
I)\  the  wirioiiN  stati->  until  17.S1,  and  by  that  time  the 
( 'oiitincntal  Coii'^ro-.  to  wliirh  tlio>r  arlit  k>  tor  the  lir>t 
linic  ^M\c  a  Ic^al  >aiution.  had  ica-^cd  to  play  any  im- 
portant finution. 

Just  as  thi'  ConlCdrration  \va-  horn,  however,  it  was 
•>a\('il  iroin  the  calamity  ol'  (()nii)Iete  in->it:nititaniH-  hv 
l)ci;iLi;  ina(h-  a  |)r..|)trty  liolder.  ( )ne  of  the  oh>tatles  to 
all  ellorts  looking  toward  e\'en  so  loo:.^  a  imion  as  that 
ol  the  Confederation  had  Ixen  the  pos->e>--ion  hv  several 
of  the  states  of  ^'reat  tracts  of  we>tern  land.  This  land 
wa>  elainied  under  old  royal  ^'r.mts,  all  of  which  were 
drawn  before  an)lhin;^  was  known  about  the  internal 
j,'eo,i.;ra])hy  of  the  country,  and  Sv\eral  of  which  read 
'■  from  sea  to  sea."  Some  of  tlie  siii.dkT  states.  Maryland 
in  particular,  insisted  that  these  lands  must  be  surren- 
dered as  a  prelude  to  any  j)lan  of  confederation.  This 
was  at  last  a<j:reed  to.  and  .Maryland  niaile  [los^ible  the  for- 
mation of  the  Confederation  in  17S1.  This  action  ulti- 
mately assured  the  existence  of  a  national  government. 
The  Confederation  now  had  a  territory  to  <;.)\ern  out- 
-ide  the  boundaries  of  the  federated  states.  This  terri- 
tory, althou,i;h  thinly  j)opulated.  was  almost  as  larj^'e  as 
.dl  the  thirteen  oritrinal  states.  Finally,  wlien  Munasseh 
Cutler  appeared  before  the  Continental  Congress  with 
d  proposition  to  purcli.i-e  lar^e  tracts  of  this  land,  and 
it  bcijan  to  apjiear  tiot  simply  in  '^le  li^ht  of  a  territory 
to  be  governed,  but  also  as  a  source  of  income.  Conf,;ress 
roused  from  its  lethargy  to  almost  its  only  important 
actiitn  ^ince  it  had  been  '.eirally  constituted.  —  the  passing 
of  the  Ordinance  of  17S7. 


r    -' 


FORMATION   OF    Illi;    (,o\  KKVMrVT 


85 


This  ordindruc  providing  for  the  ori^ani/ation  an  ! 
p)\XTnnKnt  of  the  ^roat  territory  between  tlie  Ohio,  the 
.Mi»i.s>i|  pi,  the  (ireat  Lakes,  and  the  Alle^henies  eon- 
tains  some  remarkable  provisions.  There  i>.  i»f  eourse, 
the  famous  one  upon  which  the  thirteenth  ameiKhiient 
to  the  national  constitution  was  afterward  ba.sed,  pro- 
viding that  "There  shall  be  neither  >lavery  nor  involun- 
tary servitude  in  the  said  territory,  otherwise  than  in 
the  punishment  of  crimes,  whereof  the  party  shall  have 
been  duly  convicted."  Hut  there  is  also  a  complete  "bill 
of  rights,"  providing  for  religious  liberty,  the  right  of 
lidhcis  corpus,  and  trial  by  jury,  representative  govern- 
ment, bail  for  all  save  capital  olTenses,  moderate  tires, 
no  cruel  and  unusual  punishments,  and  also  for  the 
foundation  of  a  public  school  system.  This  latter  pro- 
vision was  to  be  little  heeded  until  a  movement  of 
the  working  class  should  force  this  issue  upon  the 
people.  These  provisions,  however,  when  contrasted 
with  the  proceedings  of  the  constitutional  convention, 
show  that  the  Continental  Congress  had  become 
much  more  of  a  popular  body  than  was  the  one  that 
wrote  the  present  fundamental  law  of  the  United 
States. 

During  the  time  of  the  Revolution,  in  spite  of  this  one 
very  important  action  by  the  Continental  Congress,  the 
real  governing  power  in  the  country  had  been  the  group 
of  individuals  who  were  in  the  midst  of  "vents  and  were 
making  history  rather  th  n  recording  its  results  in  legis- 
lation. These  were  the  men  who  best  incarnated  the 
spirit  of  the  rising  social  class.  They  were  willing  that 
the  work  of  legislation,  like  the  work  of  fiL'hting  in 
the  ranks,  should  be  done  by  others,   providing  their 


i\ 


86 


C.IAL   FORCES   IN'    AMKRICAX    HISTORY 


hands    were    upon    the    levers    that   moved   the   social 
machinery.' 

The  American  Revolution,  like  most  wars,  was  fought 
by  those  who  had  least  interest  in  its  outcome.  The 
workers  and  "embattled  farmers."  who  as  "minute  men" 
at  Concord  "fired  the  shot  heard  round  the  world,"  and 
left  the  imj)riiU  of  their  bleeding  feet  at  Valley  Forge 
and  \'orkt()wn,  found  themselves  at  the  close  of  the  war 
hopelessly  indebted  to  the  mercantile  and  linancial  class 
of  the  coast  cities.  The  Continental  currency,  with 
which  the  government  had  i)aid  for  supplies,  had  now 
become  valueless  in  the  hands  of  the  producers  of  wealth. 
One  hundred  and  twelve  million  dollars  had  been  thus 
extorted  from  the  people.  Ta.xes  were  most  inequitably 
distributed,  the  poll  tax  being  one  of  the  most  common 
methods  of  taxation.  In  Massachusetts  it  was  proposed 
to  collect  over  five  milliim  dollars  by  this  method  from 
90.000  taxpayers.  The  fisheries  were  almost  wiped  out 
during  the  war  and  only  slowly  revived  with  the  coming 
of  peace.'  McMaster  says  of  \'ermont:  "One  half  of  the 
community  was  totally  bankrupt,  the  other  half  plunged 
in  the  depths  of  poverty."  Of  another  state  he  says: 
"  It  was  then  the  fashion  of  Xew  Hampshire,  as  indeed 
it  was  everywhere,  to  lock  men  up  in  jail  the  moment 
they  were  so  unfortunate  as  to  owe  their  fellows  a  six- 

'  Woodrow  Wilsrtti.  "History  o{  the  Anicriian  People, "  \'ol.  Ill,  p.  22  : 
"The  lomnioii  lUTairs  of  the  loiinln-  had  therefore  to  be  conducted  as 
the  revolution  had  in  fact  been  conducted,  —  not  by  the  authority  or  the 
resolutions  of  the  Congress,  but  by  the  extraordinary  activity,  enterprise, 
and  influence  cf  a  few  of  the  leadinjj  men  in  the  States  who  had  union  and 
harmonious  common  efTort  at  heart." 

^  .\merican  Slate  Papers,  "Commerce  and  Navigation."  Vol.  I,  pp. 
(I  - .'  1 . 


K 


FORMATION   OF  THK  GOVKRNMF.NT 


87 


pence  or  shilling.  Had  this  law  been  rigorously  executed 
in  the  autumn  of  1785,  it  is  probable  that  not  far  from 
two  thirds  of  the  community  would  have  been  in  the 
prisons." 

The  burden  of  debt  had  been  multiplied  by  the  de- 
preciation of  currency,  and  the  attempt  to  collect  it  in 
specie.  To  again  quote  McMaster:  "Civil  actions  were 
multiplied  to  a  degree  that  seems  scarcely  credible.  The 
lawyers  were  overwhelmed  with  cases.  The  courts  could 
not  try  half  that  came  before  them."  ' 

The  wealthy  citizens  who  had  sent  their  money  to  war 
that  it  might  breed  and  multiply  found  their  bonds  would 
be  of  little  value  unless  ta.xes  could  be  squeezed  from  the 
workcis.  The  Confederacy  had  no  power  to  levy  taxes, 
or  to  collect  mon'^y  in  any  way  save  by  the  sale  of  lands 
and  bonds  and  the  issuance  of  paper  money.  There  were 
no  pui   hasers  for  any  of  these  commodities. 

The  manufacturers  who  had  revolted  against  British 
tariffs  were  now  looking  for  a  national  government  to 
assist  them  with  tariff  legislation.  The  Revolution,  by 
almost  completely  stopping  importations,  had  acted  on 
tlie  budding  manufacturers  like  a  prohibitive  taritT. 
Moreover,  the  exigencies  of  war  created  an  abnormal 
demand  for  certain  articles,  and  the  Continental  Congress 
devoted  no  small  portion  of  its  energies  to  efforts  to  en- 
courage domestic  manufactures.  The  moment  the  war 
ended,  on  the  other  hand,  there  was  a  flood  of  importa- 
tions. British  manufacturers,  especially,  were  accused 
of  "dumping"  goods  upon  the  market  at  less  than  Lon- 
don prices  for  the  especial  purpose  of  preventing  the 

'  McMaster,  "Histor>-  of  the  I'coplc  of  the  United  States,"  Vol.  I, 

p.  i02. 


I 


;m 


88 


SOCIAL   FORCKS   I.\   AMERICAN   HISTORY 


growth  of  American  manufactures.  We  arc  not  surprised 
to  learn  that  "By  no  class  of  the  community  was  the 
formation  of  the  new  governmen'  and  its  general  adop- 
tion by  the  states,  more  zealously  urged  than  by  the 
friends  of  American  manufactures."  ' 

The  paramount  interest  of  the  time  was  commercial, 
and  it  was  fitting  that  commerce  should  play  the  largest 
part  in  the  formation  of  the  new  government.  Com- 
merce demanded  a  powerful  central  government.  No 
other  could  afford  protection  in  foreign  ports,  provide 
for  uniform  regulations  throughout  the  country,  make 
and  enforce  commercial  treaties,  and  maintain  the  gen- 
eral conditions  essential  to  profitable  trading.  As 
Fisher  Ames  said  in  the  first  Congress :  — 

"I  conceive,  sir,  that  the  present  constitution  was 
dictated  by  commercial  necessity,  more  than  any  other 
cause.  The  want  of  an  efiUcicnt  government  to  secure 
the  manufacturing  interests,  and  to  advance  our  com- 
merce, was  long  seen  by  men  of  judgment,  and  pointed 
out  by  patriots  solicitous  to  promote  the  general  welfare." - 

All  of  these  interests  were  confined  to  the  New  England 
and  Middle  states.  Unless  a  class  could  be  found  in  the 
South  that  was  also  interested  in  a  centralized  govern- 
ment, there  could  be  little  hope  of  forming  a  union.  In 
the  North  the  farmers  were  opposed  to  a  central  govern- 
ment and  the  merchants  were  its  friends.  In  the  South 
the  reverse  was  true.  There  the  great  planters,  who  were 
the  social  rulers,  favored  the  formation  of  the  union.     The 


'  Bishop,  "Histor>'  of  .American  Manufactures."  Vol.  I,  p.  422. 

'  .Vnnals  of  Congress,  Vol.  I,  p.  2,^0.  See  also  "Histor>-  of  SulTolk 
County.  Massachusetts,"  Vol.  II,  p.  84;  and  VV.  C.  Webster,  "General 
Historv-  of  Com.Ticrce."  p.  3.',  5, 


FORMATION   OF   TilK   (.()\  KKN'MKNT 


89 


explanation  of  this  is  found  in  thr  fart  tliat  the  planters 
of  the  South  did  their  own  exporting,  but  did  it  throu.Ljli 
Knj^Hsli  merchants.  The  hitter  were  driving;  a  profitable 
trade  through  their  control  of  importations  and  the  clian- 
nels  of  export.  The  merchants  ,vere  growing  rich  and 
the  planters  poor.  The  latter  saw  a  j)o.->il)ilil\-  of  relief 
in  an  internal  commerce  and  in  the  devrl(ii)ment  of  do- 
mestic shii)ping  with  the  opening  of  the  West  Indian 
trade  through  commercial  treaties.' 

To  collect  debts,  public  and  private,  to  levy  a  tarilf 
for  the  benefit  of  "infant  industries,"  to  protect  the 
fisheries  and  pay  bounties  to  the  lishers.  to  assist  the 
Southern  planter  in  marketing  his  crops,  and  to  secure 
commercial  treaties  and  guard  commercial  interests  in 
all  parts  of  the  world  a  centralized  government  was 
needed.  Those  who  desired  such  a  government  were, 
numerically  speaking,  an  insignificant  minority  of  the 
I)()pulation,  but,  once  more,  they  were  the  class  whose 
interests  were  bound  up  with  progress  toward  a  higher 
social  stage.  In  advancing  their  interests  this  wealthy 
class  of  planters,  merchants,  and  manufacturer:,  was 
really  buikling  for  future  progress. 

The  wageworking,  farming,  and  debtor  class  naturally 
had  no  desire  for  a  strong  central  government.  These 
desired  above  all  relief  from  the  crushing  burden  of  (lebt. 
They  sought  this  relief  in  new  issues  of  paper  money,  in 
''stay  laws"  postponing  the  collection  of  debts,  and  in 
restrictions  on  the  powers  of  the  courts.  In  regard  to 
government  they  cried  out  for  economy  and  low  taxes. 
The   ever   recurring   populistic    feud    between    frontier 

>  McMastcr,  "IIist<)r>-  of  the  IVupk-  of  t!ic  Uiiilcd  Slates,"  \ol.   I, 


go 


SOCIAL    F(JRCi:S    I.\    AMERICAN-    IILilOKV 


debtors  and  coast  creditors  made  its  ai)i)c'arancc.     The 
former   were   in   an   overwhelming   majority,    but    they 

lacked   cohesion,   collective  energy,   and   intelligence, 

in  short,  class  consciousness. 

It  u  ,-,  in  Massachusetts  that  the  struggle  became 
especially  violent.  The  populislic  debtors  elected  a 
legislature  pledged  to  carry  out  their  i)rogram.  When 
the  legislature  met.  influences  were  brought  to  bear  Uf)on 
it  by  the  creditor  class  of  Boston  that  caused  its  mem- 
bers to  break  their  pledges.  Angered  at  this  anarchistic 
defeat  of  the  popular  will,  the  farmers  began  to  defy  and 
intimidate  the  courts.  As  almost  invariably  happens, 
when  a  working  class  rises,  collectivist  ideas  found  ex- 
pression. (Jencral  Knox,  then  Secretary  of  War.  who 
was  sent  by  the  Continental  Congress  to  investigate  the 
situation,  reported  that 

"Their  creed  is  that  the  property  of  the  United  States 
has  been  protected  from  the  confiscation  of  Britain  by 
the  joint  exertions  of  all.  and  therefore  ought  to  be  the 
common  property  of  all."  ' 

When  the  courts  attempted  to  force  the  collection  of 
debts  from  those  who  had  nothing,  the  desperate  debtors 
rallied  to  arms  under  the  leadership  of  Daniel  Shays. 
a  veteran  of  the  Revolution,  and  ca{)tured  some  of 
the  smaller  cities.  Although  there  was  no  money  in  the 
treasury  of  Massachusetts  with  which  to  carry  on  the 
functions  of  -overnment.  yet  the  militia  was  called  out 
to  shoot  down  these  starving  veterans  of  the  Revolution, 
and  the  wealthy  merchants  and  bankers  of  Boston  ad- 
vanced the  money  with  which  to  pay  the  troops.- 

'  Ir\inp.  "I.iiV  of  \Va>liintrton,"  Vol.  IV.  p.  451. 

-  -McMiiitcr.  "lliitr-ry  of  ihc  People  of  the  United  bUics,"  Vol.  I, 


H 


FORMATION    OF   TllK    (.0\  KKNMr.NT 


91 


There  was  a  similar  situation  in  Rhode  Ishind.  with 
the  difference  that  in  this  state  the  debtors  were  able 
to  seize  the  legishiture  and  force  it  to  do  their  will.  The 
result  was  something  very  like  civil  war,  with  the  debtors 
trying  to  force  their  creditors  to  accej)t  the  pajier  money 
that  had  been  issued.  Here,  also,  we  find  the  collectiN  i>t 
idea,  coupled  with  a  crude  sort  of  state  socialism  which, 
as  populism,  became  familiar  on  the  western  prairies 
more  than  a  century  later. 

"A  convention  of  all  the  towns  in  Providence  county 
met  at  Smithfield  o  consult  upon  further  measures  of 
hostility  toward  the  merchants,  whom  they  accused  of 
exporting  specie,  and  thus  causing  the  distresses  of  the 
State.  A  j)lan  of  '  State  trade  '  was  projujsed.  to  be  sub- 
mitted to  the  General  Assembly,  and  the  Ciovernor  was 
requested  to  call  a  special  session  for  that  purpose.  The 
plan  was  for  the  State  to  provide  vessels  and  impcjrt 
goods  on  its  own  account,  under  direction  of  a  committee 
of  the  legislature ;  that  produce,  lumber,  and  labor,  as 
well  as  money,  should  be  received  in  payment  of  taxes, 
and  thus  furnish  cargoes  in  return  for  which  specie  and 
goods  could  be  obtained.  Interest  certificates  were  no 
longer  to  be  received  in  payment  of  duties,  but  the 
private  importers  were  to  be  compelled  to  pay  them  in 
money.  The  act  making  notes  of  hand  negotiable  was 
to  be  rei)caled,  and  the  statute  of  limitation  shortened  to 
two  years."  ' 

These  uprisings  gave  the  final  jar  that  was  neces.sary 
to  solidify  the  forces  working  for  a  national  government. 


PP-,v8-3ig;  ("i.  R.  Minot,  "Hi>t()r>'of  the  In-iurrtv  tidn  in  Massachusetts 
in  17S6." 

'  S.  G.  Amoid,  ••Histon-oi  the  btatc  ot  Rhode  Island."  \  ol.  II,  p.  5^4. 


SOCIAL   FORCES    IX   A.MKRICAN   HISTORY 


'n 


Until  the  threat  arose  of  the  capture  of  two  or  more  states 
by  the  masses,  there  were  many  even  of  the  wealthy 
classes  who  were  inclined  to  think  that  their  interests 
might  be  best  furtherofl  by  several  separate  states. 

"But  the  rebellion  of  Shays  broke  out.  In  an  instant 
public  opinion  changed  completely.  Stern  patriots, 
who,  while  all  went  well,  talked  of  the  dangers  of  baneful 
aristocracies,  soon  learned  to  talk  of  the  dangers  of  bane- 
ful democracies."  * 

There  are  few  things  more  striking  than  this  complete 
ch;;nge  of  front  by  the  budding  capitalists  of  Revolu- 
tionary times  in  obedience  to  material  class  interests.  In 
1776  they  were  all  for  paper  money,  restriction  of  the 
power  of  the  courts,  "natural  rights,"  and  the  whole 
string  of  democratic  principles.  By  1786  they  had  re- 
jected all  these  principles  and  were  defending  most  of  the 
positions  of  the  English  government  of  King  George, 
while  the  prercvolutionary  principles  were  left  for  debt- 
ridden  farmers  and  wc^rkingmen.  It  is  at  least  interest- 
ing to  learn  that  the  ruling  class  had  even  the  same 
demagogues  to  secure  popular  support,  and  that  Sam 
Adams  was  now  an  ardent  defender  of  the  creditor 
class. ^ 

The  framing  of  the  Constitution  under  these  condi- 
tions took  on  much  of  the  character  of  a  secret  conspira- 
tory  coup  d'etat,  such  as  most  historians  congratulate 
America  on  having  escaped.  The  little  group  of  indi- 
viduals who  best  represented  the  ruling  class,  and  who 
had    dominated    throughout    the   Revolution,    were,    to 


lii 


Pi^w. 


'  McMaster,  "History  of  the  People  of  the  United  States,"  Vol.  I, 

P-  ,^oi- 

-  J.  K.  Hosmer,  ••5am  .Adams,  The  Man  of  the  Town-Mceiing,""  p.  51. 


"^^^ 


'..  C  -'' 


FORMATION    OF   Till:    (;0\  F.RNMKNT 


93 


a  large  extent,  losing  their  control.  They  now  set  about 
recaj)turing  it  tlirougli  a  secret  counter-revolution. 

The  tirst  stej)  was  an  invitatit)n  fr';m  Washington  'o 
visit  him  at  his  home  at  Mt.  Vernon,  extended  to  Lt)in- 
missioners  apj)ointed  by  Maryland  and  Virginia  to  con- 
sider methods  of  regulating  commerce  in  Chesajieake 
Bay.  These  men  arranged  for  a  commercial  con\ention 
at  .\nnai)olis,  September  ii.  17S6,  and  an  address  was 
issued  which  carefully  wove  in  with  the  local  questions 
general  hints  of  the  need  for  wider  national  arrangements. 
This  whole  matter  is  set  forth  in  a  report  of  the  French 
minister,  Otto,  to  his  chief.  Count  \'ergennes,  and  as  he  was 
more  nearly  an  impartial  observer  than  almost  any  one 
else  who  has  reported  these  events,  it  might  be  well  to  let 
him  tell  the  story.    He  says,  writing  October  10,  1786  :  — 

"Although  there  are  no  nobles  in  America,  there  is  a 
class  of  men,  denominated  gentlemen,  who,  by  reason  of 
their  wealth,  their  talents,  their  education,  their  families, 
or  the  ofTiccs  they  hold,  aspire  to  a  preeminence  which 
the  people  refuse  to  grant  them  ;  and  although  many  of 
these  men  have  betrayed  the  interests  of  their  order  to 
gain  popularity,  there  reigns  among  them  a  connection  so 
much  the  more  intimate  as  they  almost  all  of  them  dread 
the  efTorts  of  the  people  to  despoil  them  of  their  posses- 
sions, and,  moreover,  they  are  creditors,  and  therefore 
interested  in  strengthening  the  government  and  watching 
over  the  execution  of  the  laws.  ...  By  proposing  a 
new  organization  of  the  general  government  all  minds 
would  have  been  revolted  ;  circumstances  ruinous  to  the 
commerce  of  America  have  happily  arisen  to  furnish  the 
reformers  with  a  pretext  for  introducing  innovations. 


Ii 


^f^^^ 


94 


SOCIAJ-    I-UkCKS    IN    A.MKKIC.W    HISTORY 


"The  authors  of  this  proposition  (the  Annapolis  con- 
vention) had  no  hope  nor  even  desire  to  see  the  success  of 
this  assembly  of  commissioners  which  was  only  intended 
to  prepare  a  (jUL>lion  more  important  than  that  of  com- 
merce. The  measures  were  so  well  taken  that  at  the  end 
of  September  no  more  than  five  states  were  represented 
in  Annap  lis,  and  the  commissioners  from  the  northern 
states  tarried  several  days  at  New  \'ork  in  order  to  retard 
their  arrival.  The  states  which  assembled  after  having 
wailed  nearly  three  weeks  separatetl  under  the  pretext 
that  they  were  insufi'icient  in  numbers  to  enter  on  the 
business,  and  to  justify  this  dissolution  they  addressed  to 
the  difTerent  legislatures  and  to  Congress  a  report."  ' 

All  this  scheme  is  exposed  and  its  character  admitted 
by  Madison  in  i)aper5  written  by  him  and  discovered  after 
his  death.  Delegates  to  this  convention  purposely 
remained  away  in  pursuance  of  a  conspiracy  to  prevent 
the  action  for  which  it  was  ostensibly  called.  It  was 
then  possible  to  go  to  the  Continental  Congress  with  the 
plea  that  the  commercial  arrangements  for  which  it  was 
pretended  these  two  gatherings  had  been  called,  were  so 
pressing  that  a  larger  body  must  be  convened.  The 
Continental  Congress  then  passed  a  resolution  in  February, 
1787,  saying  that  it  was  expedient  that  a  conventio  .  of 
delegates  from  the  several  states  be  held  in  Philadelphia 
in  May  "for  the  sole  and  express  purpose  of  revising  the 
Articles  of  Confederation,  and  reporting  to  Congress  and 

'  Quoted  in  H.  J.  Ford,  "The  Rise  and  Growth  of  .Xmerican  Politics," 
pp.  40-4,V  See  also  Morse,  "Life  of  Hamilton,"  Vol.  I,  pp.  212-21,?; 
H.  Von  Kolst,  "Constitutional  Histor\-  of  the  United  States,"  Vol.  I, 
pp.  50-51  ;  T.  Watson,  "Life  and  Times  of  Thomas  JelTerson,"  p.  292; 
Scik-ukr,  '  Hibtory  of  the  Cniicd  States,'  Vol.  1,  pp.  32-33. 


^^^tiMin^^m 


FORMATION    OF   THK   (.(i\  KRN.MFNT 


95 


tlic  several  Icj^'islaturcs  such  alterations  and  provisions 
tlierein  as  shall,  when  aj^reed  to  in  C\)nf,'ress  and  eon- 
firmcd  by  the  states,  render  the  Federal  ("onstitution  ade- 
quate to  the  exif^'encies  of  government  and  the  preserva- 
tion of  the  union." 

This  was  the  only  form  of  legality  in  the  (.ailing  of  the 
body  that  formulated  the  fundamental  law  of  the  United 
States;  and  no  sooner  had  that  body  assembled  than  it 
l)roceeded  to  break  this  one  link  which  was  supposed  to 
give  it  a  legal  sanction.  It  absolutely  disregarded  the 
conditions  of  its  existence  as  fixed  by  Congress,  and  pro- 
ceeded to  formulate  an  entirely  new  government,  and 
never  bothered  to  report  to  the  Congress  to  which  it  was 
supposed   to  be  subordinate. 

After  this  one  short  appearance  in  public,  the  con- 
sjjirators  again  took  to  darkness.  They  observed  the 
most  elaborate  precautions  to  preserve  the  secrecy  of 
their  deliberations.  They  forbade  the  keeping  of  any 
notes,  and  refused  to  give  out  any  information  as  to  their 
actions.  In  spite  of  this  rule  James  Madison  took  copious 
notes,  which  were  published  almost  a  half  centurv  later. 
These  notes  are  almost  our  only  source  of  information 
concerning  the  proceedings,  as  the  only  other  person  who 
kept  notes  left  the  convention  in  disgust  before  it  had 
completed  its  work.  As  MadLson  was  one  of  the  most 
conservative  members  of  the  convention  and  the  one 
most  responsible  for  its  conspiratory  character,  we  may 
be  sure  that  if  any  bias  is  to  be  found  in  his  report,  it  will 
not  be  in  the  direction  of  the  unpo()ular  side. 

Nevertheless,  these  debates,  as  reported,  afford  ample 
evidence  that  the  constitutional  convention  was  lit  tit? 
more  than  a  committee  of  the  merchants,  manufacturers, 


96 


SOCIAL  rokcKs  IN"  .\mi;kic.\\  history 


hankers,  and  f)lantiTs.  met  to  arranf^e  a  government  that 
would  ])roniole  tlieir  intensts.  Only  t\vel\e  states  were 
repre-cntt'd  at  the  heginnin;,',  and  one  of  these  droj^ped 
out  hefoie  the  end.  Of  sixty-five  delegates  elected  only 
hfty-five  were  ever  j)resent,  and  hut  thirty-nine  signed 
the  final  report.  Throughout  the  diMU^sions  the  utmo.-t 
contempt  for  the  mass  of  the  peoj.le  was  disjjlayed. 
Madison  and  Hamilton,  who  hail  most  to  do  with  the 
formation  of  the  constitution,  were  in  favor  of  plai  ing 
power  as  far  as  possihle  from  the  people  and  gi\ing  prop- 
erty especial  representation.  The  attitude  of  the  con- 
vention is  shown  by  an  expression  used  by  Kllsworth  of 
Connecticut  in  opposing  any  atlion  restricting  slavery. 
''Let  us  not  intermeddle."  he  said.  "As  population 
increases  poor  laborers  will  be  so  plenty  as  to  render 
slaves  useless."  • 

It  has  been  pointed  out  that  with  the  return  of  peace 
the  wealthy  classes,  including  those  who  hail  remained 
Loyalists  iluring  the  actual  fight,  returned  to  power.'- 
The  merchants  of  Boston,  frightenetl  at  Shays'  Rebellion,' 
the  manufacturers  of  Pennsylvania,  anxious  for  protec- 
tion.^ and  wishing  to  re.-,i:ict  the  growing  power  of  the 
western  districts,'  the  commercial  classes  of  the  South, 
desiring  a  centra!  government  for  the  settlement  of  dis- 
putes concerning  navigable  rivers,  —  all  of  these  were 
oj^posed  to  democracy.     All  were  anxious  to  secure  their 

'  J.  Allen  Smith,  "The  Spirit  of  Amcri.  ;in  (Jovernment."  [jp.  27-.?Q. 

*  ".M.:iiori;il  History  of  IJoston,"  Justin  Win^^jr  (editor).  Vol.  IV, 
PP-  74  75- 

'  J.  L.  lii'^ho]).  "History  of  American  Manufacturers, "  \'ol.  II,  p.  14. 

*  M.  Farrand,  "Compromises  of  the  Constitution,"  American  Ilis- 
tvr:i,:;    a,".',':.:',   j).   4M,   .\|>rii,    ii;04- 

'  William  C.  Webster,  "General  History  of  Commerce,"  p.  341. 


^ 


FORMATION    or    I  III;   <.oVI,K.\Mi;.\T 


97 


privileges  against   attack   by  the   disronli-ntcd   di-htors, 
frontiersmen,  farmers,  and  wa^eworkers. 

It  was  from  these  ehi>-e-,  in-pired  h}-  tlu-^e  mi>(i\r-;, 
that  the  delegates  were  drawn  that  framed  the  eon>li- 
tution.  ''There  i>  no  doubt  that  the  tuw  (on>titution 
was  framed  primaril)'  in  the  intere.>t  of  the  indu>lrial 
and  commercial  classes,  and  was  finall>'  ratified  largely  as 
a  result  of  their  acti\  e  and  intelligi'iit  work  in  it.--  hi  hah." 

IIa\ing  formuiated  a  eon>titution,  the  next  >tep  was 
to  secure  something  that  would  at  lea>t  havi-  the  appear- 
ance of  a  popular  acceptance  of  the  document.  Since 
fully  two  thirds  of  the  population  were  oppo>ed  to  any 
such  adoption,  and  remained  so  long  after  it  had  become 
a  law,  it  might  have  api)eare(l  th.it  the  framers  of  the 
constitution  had  an  impossible  task  upon  their  hands. 
Fortunately  for  them  it  was  not  neces-ary  to  take  a 
popular  vote.  The  referendum  had  not  yet  been  accepted 
as  a  principle  of  political  action,  and  the  statement  of  the 
Declaration  of  Independence  that  "all  governments 
derive  their  just  powers  from  the  con.sent  of  the  governed  " 
had  been  relegated  to  the  limbo  of  {)oIitical  i>latitudes. 

The  work  of  imi)osing  the  constitution  upon  the  coun- 
try was  further  lightened  b\-  tlie  f.u  t  that  at  least  three 
fourths  of  tho.sc  who  would  to-day  constitute  the  elec- 
i orate  were  then  disfranchised.  Moreover,  the  disfnin- 
chised  ones  were  just  those  who  were  almost  unanimous 
against  the  constitution.  Property  qualit'ications  shut 
out  the  working  class  of  the  cities  and  the  debtors  of  the 
back  country.  Out  of  a  po{)uIation  of  ^^.ooo.ooo  not  more 
than  I20.000  were  entitled  to  even  vote  for  those  who 
were  to  constitute  the  state  conventions  that  were  to 
consider  the  con.stitution. 
u 


-^-^ 


^- 


98 


SOCl.M.    |()K(|;.S    IN    A.MKKICAN    HISTORY 


The  (lil.'.i,Mtc's  t(t  tlu'-^f  (orivciuions  wvrc  generally 
(■l(iti<l  on  the  sanu"  l)a>is  as  llic  riR-inbtTs  of  the  various 
state  k'^^'i-lalurcs.  This  a|,Min  i^avv  an  im  ri-ascd  advan- 
tage to  the  del'iiiders  of  the  constitution,  as  the  states  had 
been  distriited  with  the  delinile  object  in  view  of  dis- 
( riniiiiatinj^  a^;ainst  the  haek-country  (h'stricts. 

In  a  monograph  on  "The  ( ieo^raphical  Distribution  of 
the  \ote  of  ihi'  I'hirteen  States  on  the  Federal  (Constitu- 
tion," l)y  Orin  (i.  Lihby.  the  economic  interest  back  of 
the  dele^atts  to  each  of  the  state  conventions  is  carefully 
invest ij,'ated.  The  result  shows  a  reco;^nition  of  class 
interests  almost  marvelous  when  we  consider  the  generally 
undeveloi)ed  industrial  condition  of  the  time.  The 
frontiersmen,  the  farmers,  the  debtors,  the  people  who 
lived  in  the  country  and  possessed  little  property,  were 
almost  solidly  a^Minst  the  constitution.  The  merchants, 
the  money  lenders,  the  lawyers,  the  great  landowners, 
and  the  planters,  and  those  directly  under  their  influence 
those  delegates  who  voted  for  the  constitution. 

In  spite  of  gerrymandering  and  disfranchisement,  in 
spite  of  the  marvelous  special  pleading  of  Hamilton  and 
Madison,  whose  political  pamphlets  in  advocacy  of  the 
constitution  were  destined  to  become  the  classic  com- 
mentaries on  that  document ;  in  spite  of  the  tremendous 
influence  of  its  powerful  friends,  it  was  long  before  a 
suflu  lent  number  of  the  states  would  indorse  it  to  make 
possible  a  further  step.  Many  of  those  who  did  indorse  it 
qualified  that  indorsement  with  a  provision  for  a  "bill 
of  rights."  and  this  was  provided  for  at  the  first  session 
of  Congress.  Otherwise  there  would  have  been  no 
guarantee  of  freedom  of  speech,  assemblage,  and  press,  or 
of  trial  by  jury,  or  freedom  of  contract,  or  of  any  of  those 


A-Lmt'^a 


FORMATION'   OF  TMIl    GOVKkNMIAT 


99 


thinj^s  wlikh  constitutions,  even  at  that  time,  were  sup- 
posed to  he  established  mainly  to  secure. 

Rhode  Island  refused  even  this  (|ualilied  imlorsement. 
Although  the  Articles  oi  Confederation  pro\  ided  for 
unanimous  action  before  any  law  should  be  binding,  yet 
steps  were  taken  to  organize  the  new  go\ernment  as 
soon  as  ten  states  had  given  their  agreement,  and  finally 
Rhode  Island  was  threatened  with  force  to  compel  its 
consent. 

To  sum  up:  the  organic  law  of  this  nation  was  formu- 
lated in  secret  session  by  a  body  called  into  e.xistence 
tlirough  a  conspiratory  trick,  and  was  forced  upon  a 
disfranchised  people  by  means  of  a  dishonest  apportion- 
ment in  order  that  the  interests  of  a  small  body  of  wealthy 
rulers  might  be  served.  This  should  not  blind  us  to  the 
fact  that  this  small  ruling  class  really  represented  prog- 
ress, that  a  unified  government  was  essential  to  that  in- 
dustrial and  social  growth  which  has  made  this  country 
possible.  It  also  should  not  blind  us  to  the  fact  that  there 
was  nothing  particularly  sacred  about  the  origin  of  this 
government  which  should  render  any  attempt  to  change 
it  sacrilegious. 


1 


i 


I' 


a 

H 


CHAPTER   IX 

INDUSTRIAL   CONDITIONS    AT   THE    IJIX'.INNING   OF   THE 
AMERICAN   GOVERNMENT 


The  industrial  foundation  for  national  solidarity  was 
slight  when  the  American  government  was  born  in  17S9. 
The  ruling  classes  of  the  different  states  had  been  drawn 
together  by  the  common  fear  of  a  proletarian  ui)rising 
and  the  common  need  for  a  central  government  to  further 
a  few  immediate  interests.  A  decade  might  easily  bring 
such  a  divergence  in  these  interests  that  the  central 
government  would  disintegrate.  The  only  thing  that 
could  prevent  this  would  be  the  growth  of  a  national 
industrial  life. 

The  size  of  any  industrial  unit  and  of  the  political 
establishment  based  upon  it  de[)end  upon  the  character 
and  extent  >f  the  transp()rlatii)n  system.  The  method 
of  transporting  goods  determines  the  extent  of  the  mar- 
ket. It  is  seldom  tliat  a  political  unit  is  larger  than  the 
circle  of  the  market  for  the  great  staples  of  production. 
There  have  been  exceptions  to  this  rule,  but  they  have 
usually  been  short-lived  or  had  some  jx-culiar  exjilanation. 

When  Washington  took  the  presidential  chair,  methods 

of  transportation  in  the  United  States  differed  little  from 

those  wliich  j)rcvailed  in  Rome  when  she  was  mistress 

of  the  then  known  world.     What  advantage  there  might 
.....1 - _: —   -•.1.    .1.        11  •    •!• 

.-^i'"^;:    *;    v-W.t.j -'.ti  ;.»;::    ;*.  .I'l    V»ilil    LUC"   UiUCr    Ci\  iii/titiOii, 

100 


K.. 


lii 


INDUSTRIAL   CONDITIONS 


lOl 


The  commerce  of  Rome  in  the  days  of  Cics;ir  moved  over 
roads  whose  very  ruins  are  the  wonder  and  admiration 
of  modern  engineers.  American  commerce  at  the  close 
of  the  eighteenth  century  was  painfully  dragged  over 
corduroy  roads,  through  unbridged  rivers  and  morasses 
of  mud,  that  made  a  profitable  interchang-  of  heavy 
goods  over  long  distances  impossible. 

The  arrangements  for  the  transmission  of  intelligence 
were  little  more  etTective  than  those  for  the  carrying  of 
merchandise.  When  independence  was  declared,  there 
were  only  twenty-eight  post  oOices  in  all  the  thirteen 
colonies.  Fourteen  years  later,  when  Washington  had 
occuj)ied  the  presidential  chair  for  a  year  and  the  new 
administrati'c  machinery  was  fairly  well  installed,  there 
were  still  but  seventy-five.  Yet  the  population  was  over 
three  millions.  A  population  of  equal  number  to-day, 
if  as  widely  dispersed,  would  ha\-e  several  thousand  post 
otlices  to  minister  to  its  wants. 

To  maintain  even  these  miserable  accommodations, 
postal  rates  were  so  high  as  to  be  almost  prohibitive  for 
ordinary  intercourse  among  the  poorer  classes  of  the 
p('PuIation.  The  minimum  charge  for  a  single  sheet  of 
j)aper  going  less  than  thirty  miles  was  si.x  cents.  Then 
the  rates  rapitUy  increased  until  to  send  a  single  sheet 
more  than  four  hundred  and  fifty  miles  cost  twenty-five 
cents.  Additional  sheets  increased  the  amount  still 
further.  Newspapers  were  taken  only  at  the  pleasure  of 
the  mail  carriers.  Consequently  correspondence  was 
largely  confined  to  communications  on  public  matters. 

Only  four  cities  had  a  population  of  over  lo  ooo.  Of 
these  New  York  led  with  about  ,50,000.  having  but  re- 
cently pushed  into  first  place  above  Philadelphia  with 


^l' 


Hi 


^1 


mil 


102 


SOCIAL   FORCF.S    IN   AMERICAN   HISTORY 


28,000.  Boston  claimed  18,000,  Charleston,  South  Caro- 
lina, lO.ooo,  and  Hakiniorc,  13,000. 

Four  fifths  of  the  poi)ulati(jn  were  engaged  in  agricul- 
ture, or  perhaps  it  would  be  more  nearly  correct  to  say 
that  the  group  of  diversilied  industries  which  were  then 
included  under  the  name  of  agriculture  embraced  four 
nfths  of  the  industrial  life  of  the  time.  liut  these  farmers 
harvested  their  grain  with  sickles  such  as  Ruth  saw  in  the 
fields  of  Boaz.  They  threshed  their  grain  with  a  flail, 
such  as  their  Aryan  ancestors  brought  from  the  plains 
of  central  Asia  when  they  set  forth  on  that  long  racial 
march  toward  the  setting  un.  of  which  the  c-;  >ni/.ation 
of  America  was  the  latest,  long"st  step.  Although 
Jefferson  was  matliematically  calculating  a  {)low  that 
W(juld  do  its  work  with  the  least  expenditure  of  energy, 
two  generations  were  to  come  and  go  before  plows 
constructed  U(X)n  scientific  principles  were  to  appear  on 
American  farms.  In  the  meantime,  the  fields  were  dug 
ujj  with  sharpened  sticks  pointed  with  iron,  fashioned 
much  after  those  of  which  present-day  travelers  to  Egypt 
and  India  and  central  Russia  send  postal  card  photo- 
graphs to  friends  at  home. 

Cattle,  horses,  hogs,  and  sheep  were  of  a  character  that 
no  modern  farmer  would  permit  to  encumber  his  fields. 
Cattle  were  kept  almost  exclusively  for  their  hides  and 
meat,  and  as  draft  animals.  Here  and  there  in  New 
England  some  butter  and  cheese  were  made.  But  the 
cow  as  a  machine  for  the  transformation  of  a  "balanced 
ration"  into  a  definite  quantity  of  milk  and  cream  at 
the  least  possible  expense  had  scarcely  been  dreamed  of. 
She  mu;-.t  still  be  capable  of  foraging  her  food  in  the  forest 
through  the  greater  part  of  the  year  and  of  enduring  the 


,.M^^t^ 


INDUSTRIAL  CON'DITIONS 


103 


rigors  of  a  Xorthcrn  winter  without  shelter.  "Hollow 
horn."  a  disease  caused  by  extreme  cold,  exposure,  and 
insufFiciont  feed,  killed  many  animals  yearly. 

Although  Messenger,  the  father  of  the  American 
Ilamiltonian  strain  of  trotting  horses,  was  imported  in 
1786,  and  Justin  Morgan,  the  sire  of  the  once  famous 
Morgan  horses  (a  st'-ain  that  great  etTorts  are  now  being 
made  to  revive),  was  born  in  1793.  the  horses  of  this  time 
were  few  in  number  and  generally  miserable  in  character. 

The  hog  of  that  day  was  compelled  to  live  in  an  en- 
vironment, one  of  whoso  conditions  of  survival  was  to 
hunt  his  own  food  in  tht  forest  and  dodge  wild  animals 
while  doing  so,  and  the  )e  able  to  stand  a  drive  of  sev- 
eral hundred  miles  to  a  distant  market."     He  bore  little 

'  Parkinson,  who  wrote  of  a  tour  made  atxnit  this  time.  (!cm.  rihed  tlie 
hogs  that  he  saw  in  the  foMowinR  lanKiuiRu  (p.  2qo)  :  "The  real  Amerii  ;in 
hup  is  what  is  termed  the  woo<l-hog ;  they  are  Irinp  in  the  leK,  narrow  on 
t!ie  hack,  short  in  the  body,  flat  on  their  sides,  with  a  lon^'  snnut.  very 
rouph  in  their  hair,  in  make  more  like  the  fish  called  a  penh  than  any- 
thing I  ran  descrilx;.  ^'ou  may  as  well  think  of  sto[)pint;  a  (row  as  those 
hotrs.  They  will  ro  to  a  distance  from  a  fence,  take  a  nm,  and  leap 
through  the  rails,  three  or  four  feet  from  the  ground,  turnini:  themselves 
sidewise.  These  hogs  sufler  such  hardship  as  no  other  animal  could  en- 
dure. It  is  customary  to  keep  them  in  the  vvoods  all  winter,  as  there  are 
no  threshing-  or  fold-yards;  and  they  must  live  on  the  roots  of  trees,  or 
something  of  that  sort ;  but  they  are  [XKir  beyond  any  creature  that  I 
ever  saw.  That  is  [irobably  the  cause  why  the  American  pork  is  so  fine. 
I  am  not  certain  with  .American  keeping  and  treatment  if  the\-  arc  not  the 
best;  for  I  never  saw  any  animal  live  without  fo<«i,  except  this: 
and  I  am  pretty  sure  they  nearly  do  that.  When  they  are  fed,  (he 
flesh  may  well  be  sweet ;  it  is  all  \oung,  though  the  pig  be  ten  years  oMe 
and  like  pigs  in  general,  they  only  act  as  a  conveyance  to  larn,-  corn  to 
market. "  For  further  information  on  agricultural  (cmditions  .it  this  time 
see  H.  E.  .\lvord,"  Dairy  Development  in  the  United  States"  in  Report 
of  Hureau  of  .\nimal  Industry  for  i.Sqq,  p.  245  el  seq.;  Captain  William- 
son, "Description  of  the  Settlement  of  the  (Icnesce  Country  in  the  State 
of  New  \ork "  i  1 709),  pp.  32-41  ;   W.  Faux,  " Memorable  Days  in  Amcr- 


CJg 


^^-.Ma^^ 


104 


SOCIAL   FORCES   IN   AMKRIC.W   HISTORY 


resemblance  to  the  highly  perfected  pork-producing 
machine  of  the  modern  fat  stock  show. 

Considerable  eiTort  had  been  made  to  improve  the 
breed  of  sheep  because  of  the  pressing  need  of  a  domestic 
sup[)ly  of  wool  for  weaving.  Laws  forbidding  the  slaugh- 
ter of  sheep  for  mutton  had  been  passed  in  several  state's, 
and  premiums  were  quite  generally  offered  to  encourage 
sheep  breeding.  The  first  Merinos  were  imported  in 
1793,  and  frequent  importations  from  Spain  followed  in 
spite  of  the  efforts  of  Spain  to  prevent  such  action. 

Southern  industry  still  rested  primarily  upon  the 
tobacco  crop,  which  was  less  profitable  than  it  had  once 
been.  Exhaustive  methods  of  exi)loiting  the  soil  in  its 
production  were  driving  the  plantations  farther  and 
farther  from  the  seaboard  and  the  river  banks.  Cotton 
was  still  ginned  by  hand,  although  VA'i  Whitney  wa-^ 
working  on  the  model  of  the  first  cotton  gin.  Hand 
ginning  was  so  expensive  that  cotton  raising  was  not 
profitable.  We  are  not,  therefore,  much  surprised  to 
learn  that  there  was  a  strong  abolition  sentiment  in 
Maryland  and  Virginia,  where  the  slaves  on  the  worn- 
out  tobacco  plantations  were  no  longer  earning  their 
"keep,"  and  where  they  could  be  bought  for  from  one 
to  two  hundred  dollars.  The  rice  industry,  too,  was  just 
ready  for  a  transformation.  The  first  machine  for 
winnowing  rice  was  invented  in  1740.  A  machine  for 
hulling  and  another  for  threshing  it  from  the  straw 
were  invented  just  as  the  eighteenth  century  was 
closing. 


ua"  (iSjO.  PP-  7^  7.^  u.^,  i^O.  14^:  DcKljze,  '•\\c--t  \irKini.i."  [>.  43; 
\\  illiani  \l.  Smith,  "  Histon.- of  the  State  of  Indiana,"  Vol,  II,  pp.  (ii>i-<)t)2  ; 
Ilci'iry  .\dairii,  ■"iIi3ior_y  of  the  Lriiicd  Siaica,    Vol.  I,  pp.  lO-i;. 


INDUSTRIAL    COXDITIOXS 


lO: 


Miinufacturint,'  was  sliil  almost  entirely  in  the  house- 
hold sta^e.  ICvidences  ol'  a  coniin;,'  tiianiie  were,  however, 
api)arent  in  many  directions,  '[■jie  woolen  iiidu>trv.  that 
had  led  the  industrial  revolution  just  then  in  pro^jress  in 
England,  was  the  f.rst  to  enter  upon  the  factory  stage  on 
this  side  the  Atlantic.  England  was  well  aware  of  the 
advantage  which  the  newly  invented  machinerv  was 
giving  her  manufacturers  in  the  markets  of  the  world,  and 
was  seeking  in  every  way  to  maintain  her  mono[)oly. 
Heavy  penalties  were  directe'!  agamst  those  who  should 
seek  to  export  any  of  the  new  machinery,  and  several 
attempts  to  evade  these  prohibitions  failed.  In  17.,^ 
Samuel  Slater,  who  had  worked  in  the  .\rkwright  mills 
in  England,  came  to  the  United  States,  and  as  he  had 
stowed  a'  the   plans  only   in   his   head,  he  was   not 

slopped   ui    tne    customhouse.     He    built   a    com[)lete 
factory  the  next  year  in  Pawtucket,  Rhode  Island. 

At  the  very  beginning  industrial  evolution  in  the 
United  States  showed  one  peculiarity  that  was  to  dis- 
tinguish it  from  that  of  European  countries.  It  was  un- 
hampered by  traditions  and  feudal  institutions  and  cus- 
toms, and  struck  out  boldly  in  new  and  characteristic 
paths.  In  Englano  the  woolea  iufiustry  had  always  been 
di\ided  into  several  processes,  each  carried  on  under  a 
dilTerent  roof,  and  this  division  was  kept  up  even  after 
the  factory  system  w-as  introduced.  Carding  and  comb- 
ing was  one  industry,  spinning  another,  and  wcavinir, 
dyeing,  and  finishing  were  each  separated  from  all  the 
others.  Each  of  these  had  its  own  building,  owner,  in- 
dustrial organization,  purchasing  and  marketing  facilities. 
From  the  very  beginning  all  this  was  swept  aside  in  the 
Liulea  States,  and  ail  these  piroccsses  wcie  made  a  pari 


1    r 


lo6  SOCIAL   FORCKS   IN'   AMERICAN'   HISTORY 

of  one  act  (jf  production  under  one  roof  and  one  manage- 
ment ' 

Iron  and  steel  were  still  produced  largely  as  they  had 
been  for  centuries.  Ikit  the  new  "i»uddling"  method 
had  just  been  introduced ;  [jower  was  being  used  to 
drive  the  blowers,  and  everywhere  there  were  signs  of  a 
coming  (liange.  One  of  the  great  "household"  indus- 
tries of  Xcw  Kngland  was  the  manufacture  of  nails.  Each 
family  had  its  own  little  an\il.  forge,  and  simple  tools. 
The  iron  was  distributed  at  regular  intervals,  and  the 
completed  product  purchased  by  those  who.  a  little  later, 
were  to  gather  these  workers  together  in  great  factories 
tending  giant  machines,  each  of  which  would  produce 
more  nails  than  a  whole  community  of  household 
workers. 

The  shoe  trade  was  already  concentrating  around 
Boston.  But  shoes  were  still  made  with  lapstone.  awl, 
and  waxed  end. 

SuperliciaPy  industry  was  sleeping,  as  it  had  slept  for 
centuries.  A  closer  study  revealed  the  tirst  movements 
that  heralded  a  new  awakening. 

Fitch's  steamboat  was  making  regular  trips  up  and 
down  the  Delaware  in  1790.  His  neighbors  looked  upon 
him  as  a  half-insane  crank.  He  was  to  share  the  fate  of 
a  multitude  of  those  who  have  lightened  the  labor  of  the 
world.  He  died  in  poverty,  the  butt  of  ridicule,  while 
another  man  and  generation  reaped  fame  and  wealth 
from  his  ideas. 

The  great  industry  of  the  time  was  shipbuilding  and 
commerce.     Xew   England   ships   were   turning  watery 

•  "The  New  Kn^'land  States,"  Vol.  I.  MonoRraph  by  S.  D.  X.  North, 
"New  England  Woolen  Manufacturers,"  p.  202. 


INDUSTRIAL    COXDITION'S 


107 


furrows  in  every  ocean  highway  and  harbor.  Her  mer- 
chants were  already  the  most  powerful  in  the  world,  and 
were  accumulating  the  capital  which,  invested  in  the 
machinery  just  then  being  conceived  by  the  minds  of 
in\entors.  was  destined  during  the  next  generation  to 
change  the  whole  social  structure. 

It  was  the  germinal  period  of  capitalism.  The  begin- 
nings of  the  greatest  of  all  social  transformations  were 
appearing,  but  were  attracting  little  attention. 


CHAPTER   X 


KULi;    OF   COMMERCr.    AND    FIXAXCE 

Three  divisions  of  the  rulinp;  class  united  to  form  the 
constitution  and  estabh'sh  the  new  government.     These 
were  the  merchants,  the  manufacturers,  and  the  phmters. 
The  first  two  at  once  formed  an  alliance  against  the  latter 
to  secure  control  of  government.     In   tin's   alliance  the 
r.r>t  rlominated.  since  the  carrying  trade  wa>  bv  far  the 
most  highly  develoi)ed.      Its  units  of  capital  we're  larger, 
its  owners  more  clearly  conscious  of  their  class  intercuts! 
and  better  equipped  to  further  th.Kc  int..e>ts  than  the 
owners  of   the  osentials  of  any  otIuT  industry.     In  this 
America  was  following  in   the  already  well-worn   track 
of  social  evolution.     Merchants  have  generallv  been  the 
advance  guard  of  the  capitalist  army,  gathering  the  cap- 
ital and  political  power  to  be  later  cmjiloyed  and  enjoyed 
by  the  manufacturers. 

Events  were  esi)ecially  favorable  for  the  American 
carrying  trade.  The  year  of  Washington's  inauguration 
saw  the  fall  of  the  Bastile  and  the  beginning  of  the  French 
Revolution.  Everywhere  the  capitalist  class  was  coming 
into  i)ower.  Xapoleon  was  to  come  upon  the  heels  of 
the  Revolution,  and  for  a  generation  western  Europe 
was  to  do  little  b(?sides  wallow  in  its  own  blood.  Unless 
this  fact  is  kept  constantly  in  mind  it  is  imi)ossible  to 
understand  events  on  this  side  the  Atlantic.  While  the 
great  cwn-iiricrLial  nation^  were  lighting  one  another  for 

108 


RUI.K    or    COMMI.KCr.   AND    FINANCF, 


1 09 


tho  carrying  trade  of  the  world  America  ran  away  with 
the  bone  over  which  they  were  quarreling. 

The  man  who  best  incarnated  the  interests  and  ideas 
of  the  merchants  and  manufacturers  of  this  time  was 
Alexander  Hamilton  of  Xew  York.  So  true  is  this  that 
the  history  of  tlie  first  twelve  years  after  the  adoption 
of  the  constitution  has  been  \cr\-  rightfully  designated 
as  the  '■  Hamilti'iiian  period." 

The  constitution  had  been  formulated  and  foisted  upon 
the  peoi)le  largely  by  stealth  and  deception,  aided  by  a 
closel_\  restricted  suffrage.  Even  this  would  not  have 
been  possible  without  the  support  of  the  plantation  owiurs 
of  the  South.  The  Soutlicrn  planter,  however,  belonged 
to  a  social  stage  that  was  already  of  the  past.  He  was 
to  make  some  desperate  efforts  to  control  the  American 
government,  was  to  succeed  for  a  time,  and  to  go  down 
finally  only  after  the  bloodiest  war  of  the  century.  At 
this  moment  his  economic  power  appeared  to  be  upon  the 
wane.  The  cotton  gin  had  not  yet  produced  its  revolu- 
tion, and  tobacco  cultivation  had  {)assed  its  /.enith.  The 
manufacturing  class,  on  tlie  contrary,  was  just  beginning 
to  feel  its  strength,  and  it  was  with  this  class,  its  own 
first-born,  that  the  merchant  class  joinetl  hands.  In  this 
alliance  we  fmd  the  key  to  the  legislation  of  the  period. 

The  first  bill  introduced  into  the  new  ("ongress  was  a 
tariff  bill.  Its  protecti\e  features  would  be  considered 
very  mild  to-day,  but  the  debate  shows  that  it  was  con- 
sidered a  protecti\c  measure.  This  discission  brought 
out  all  the  contending  interests,  as  every  such  bill  since 
has  done.  Pennsylvania  wanted  a  tariff  on  molas-es, 
rum,  and  steel.  Massachusetts  opposed  the  first  and 
was  doubtful  of  the  second,  because  oi  the  part  they 


no 


SOCIAL    lORCTS    IN    AMKRICAN    HISTORY 


played  in  her  Cdmnurcc.  but  was  agreed  upon  the  latter. 
The  South  opposed  a  tax  on  the  last  two  and  favored 
taxinj;  the  lirst.  The  West,  lonsi-ting  of  Kentucky 
and  Tennessee,  both  of  whom  were  ilamoring  for  admis- 
sion to  the  Union,  was  cajoled  into  the  protection  camp 
by  a  tariff  on  hemp  to  offset  their  protests  against  tlie 
tax  on  salt,  levied  at  the  behest  of  the  coast  merchants 
and  fishers,  and  bearing  heavily  on  the  back,  country 
cattle  raisers. 

This  tariff  had  hardly  been  enacted  into  law  before 
Hamilton  came  forward  with  the  series  of  proposals  whose 
comprehensiveness  and  unity  of  purpose  and  far-sighted 
outlook  stamp  him  as  one  of  the  greate>t  exponents  of 
rising  class  interests,  and  therefore  one  of  the  greatest  of 
what  the  world  calls  statesmen  that  the  century  has 
produced. 

These  measures  were  designed  to  carry  still  farther  the 
j)lot  which  began  with  the  constitution.  They  proposed 
an  interpretation  of  that  document  to  which  but  a  small 
minority  of  the  small  body  who  formed  it  would  have 
agreed.  It  had  been  dilVicult  enough  to  secure  its  adop- 
tion when  it  was  supposed  to  leave  a  large  measure  of 
autonomy  to  the  states.  Xow  Hamilton  proposed  and 
carried  through  a  program  of  legislation  that  well-nigh 
destroyed  this  autonomy. 

Commerce  demands  a  strong  central  government 
callable  of  extending  its  influence  wherever  ships  sail  and 
goods  are  sold.  To  secure  such  a  government  having 
its  own  sources  of  income,  exercising  direct  control  over 
the  citizen,  and  tied  tightly  to  the  possessors  of  financial 
power,  was  Hamilton's  object. 

The  three  most  important  measures  which  went  to  the 


RlLi:  OF   COMMIRCi:   AM)    1  INANCK 


I  I  I 


buiUHnp  up  of  this  structure  wore:  first,  the  funding  of 
tlu-  national  and  state  <Ubl>  with  the  a^uniptinn  ot"  the 
latter  by  the  national  government;  seeond,  the  estab- 
lishment of  a  nati.mal  bank;  third,  tlie  introduction  of 
a  protective  tariff  and  exci>e  tax. 

Nothing  is  so  impre>>ive  to  the  bourjieois  mind  as 
property  relati..ns  -.n  a  hir^;e  >cale.  .\  ^uverninent  with 
a  fireat  national  debt,  an  interest  in  a  bank,  and  an  in- 
(IqK-ndent  source  of  revenue  fulfilled  all  ideals  in  this 

respect. 

The  national  debt,  domestic  and  forei<:n.  which  was 
inherited  bv  the  new  government  from  tlie  old  Confed- 
eration amounted  to  ab..ut  $42,000,000.  Hamilton 
propo.sed  that  this  should  be  increased  by  the  nation 
assuming  the  debts  incurred  by  the  states  during 
tlie  Revolution  an.l  still  unpai<i,  amounting  to  over 
,S  ^0,000,000.  This  would  give  a  national  debt  of  nearly 
875.000,000,  Although  there  are  many  individuals  at 
the  present  time  who  could  undertake  the  i)ayment  of 
such  a  debt,  it  appeared  of  mammoth  proportions  to  the 

men  of  1 790. 

The  certificates  of  indebtcilness  had  been  steadily  de- 
preciating during  the  Confederation.  They  were  now 
almost  worthless.  They  were  held  largely  by  specula- 
tors who  had  bought  them  tor  but  a  few  cents  on  the 
dollar.  These  speculators  at  once  gave  their  adherence 
to  the  proposal  to  make  the  national  government  re- 

s[)onsible. 

The  Southern  states  were  especially  opposed  to  this 
move  to  strenuthen  the  national  government  at  the  ex- 
Dcnse  of  the  states.  The  plantation  interests  were  much 
more  closely  united  to  the  states  and  had  little  need  oi 


1 1 


.SOCIAL    FOkCKS    IN    A.Ml.KICA.N    HISTORY 


a  stronf?  central  government.  Moreover,  several  of  the 
Southern  states  had  already  paid  their  debts,  and  this 
new  proposal  would  simply  mean  that  they  would  be 
re(|uired  to  as.-ii^t  in  bearing  tlic  burdens  of  other  stales.' 

The  South  was  very  an.xious  that  the  national  capital 
should  be  located  in  their  section.  I'or  this  Ilaiiiilton 
and  tho-^^■  lie  rei)re>ented  cared  little  or  nothing,  'i'hey 
were  interested  in  more  substantial  thing's.  So  Hamilton 
..ranged  a  barj^'ain  with  JelTerson.  \i\  its  terms  enough 
votes  were  to  be  ^iven  by  Hamilton  to  sec  ure  the  location 
of  the  capital  on  the  Potomac  on  condition  that  JetTer.^on 
deli\ered  sulVicient  Southern  votes  to  carry  the  measure, 
I)rovidinj;  for  the  assumption  of  state  debts,  .\fter  it 
was  all  over,  Jefferson  made  a  loud  comi)laint  about 
getting  the  worst  of  the  barj^'ain,  seemin<,'  to  forget  that 
bargains  are  made  with  just  that  object  in  view. 

Hamilton's  supporters  insisted  that  the  certificates  of 
indebtedness  should  be  paid  in  full,  and  this  without 
regard  to  the  amounts  paid  for  such  certiticates  by  the 
present  holders.  From  the  point  of  view  of  expediency 
(which  is  much  the  same  as  statesmanship)  this  was  un- 
doubtedly correct.  But  when  this  action  was  defended 
on  ethical  grounds,  with  high-sounding  protestati(jns  of 

'  J.  S.  Bassctt,  "The  Federalist  .System,"  p.  ,54  :  "The  stales  wh'wh  had 
the  hiri;est  unpaid  de!>ls  were  naturally  the  ino^t  anxious  fur  I'undin;,'.  ( )f 
these  Mass;uhusetts,  Cunnei  tiiut,  and  Suuth  Carolina  were  ni(»t  nolahle. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  states  having  the  small  dclits  were  against  the 
measure,  and  anioni,'  them  was  Viri,'inia,  who  had  paid  much  of  her 
RevoUilionary  deht  throuf^h  the  sale  of  western  lands.  .  .  .  Tho.-e 
persons,  and  there  were  many,  who  favored  a  stron-r  central  fjovernnient 
also  de>  l.ired  for  a»un-,ption.  In  the  wake  of  X'irL'inia  followed  the  states 
south  of  her,  save  South  Carolina,  while  New  Tnizland  was  for  assump- 


T)i.. 


,1,11,.  <!  ii,.c  .i;,;,!..,!   .1, „,„,.,,.,  ;,.i  .... 

r  ■ 


agricultural  parts  against,  the  measure." 


.i::'U  '.lie 


^^'L^im'- 


kULi:   {)!    COMMI.ktI.   AM)    IIWVCK 


"3 


honesty,  one  is  apt  to  he  reminded  oi  another  debt  that 
was  beinj^  rejjudiated  at  tiie  very  moment  sm  h  strenuous 
efforts  were  heinj;  made  to  pay  this  on-.  Tliis  was  the 
(iel)t  treated  by  forcing  the  Continental  paper  loney 
upon  farmers  in  payment  (  f)  for  their  produce,  upon 
laborers  as  wages  for  their  toil,  upon  soldiers  in  exi  hange 
for  their  lives  and  their  sufferings.  These  bills  had  been 
forced  upon  such  persons  by  .dl  the  power  of  c  ivil,  crim- 
inal, and  military  law.  backed  up  by  every  form  of  social 
ostracism,  mob  violence,  and  j)ublic  pres.->ure  that  could 
be  devised. 

Those  to  whom  it  was  owed  had  given,  not  of  their 
abundance  like  the  holders  of  tlie  certilicates  of  indebted- 
ness, but  of  their  poverty.  This  debt  amounted  to  over 
Sioo. 000,000.  It  was  absolutely  repudiated  by  the  gov- 
ernment of  Hamilton.  That  repudiation,  and  conse(|uent 
loss  by  the  producing  class,  was  one  of  the  causes  of  the 
terrible  poverty  that  prevailed.  It  is  at  least  possible 
that  some  of  the  "pro.sperity"  that  followed  the  enact- 
ment of  Hamilton's  measures  was  due  to  the  fact  tiiat  the 
workers  were  permitted  to  produce  for  use  and  e.xchange 
instead  of  for  confiscation  through  a  useless  currenc}.' 


ii;i 


i 

4 


'  JefTerson  has  thus  described  the  process  of  funding  and  assumption  : 
"After  the  expedient  of  [)aper  money  iiad  exh.iusted  itself,  (crtiliiates 
ui  delil  were  j^iven  to  the  indi\  idual  i  reditors,  with  as.-iirame  of  payment 
as  soon  as  the  United  States  .-.hould  he  alile.  liul  the  (list  esses  of  tiie-ic 
people  often  obliged  them  to  part  with  these  for  the  half,  the  fifth,  and 
e\en  a  tenth  of  their  \alae ;  and  sjieiulators  had  ni.ide  a  trade  of  cozen- 
ing the''!  from  their  holders,  Iiv  the  most  fraudulent  |>raitiies,  and  |)er- 
sua^ion  that  they  would  never  he  paid.  In  the  hill  for  funding;  and  pav- 
m^  these  Hamilton  made  no  diiTerenie  hetwecn  the  original  holder^  and 
the  fraudulent  purchasers  of  this  paper.  (Ireat  and  just  repu^nani  e  aroic 
at  putting  these  two  classes  of  i  reditor^  on  tl.e  same  fiKiiini;,  and  frreat 
txerii  yns  were  used  to  pay  the  former  the  lull  value,  and  to  the  latter 


114 


SOCIAI-    FORC  IS    I.\    AMKRICAX    HISTORY 


The  class  of  bankers  was  just  appearing  There  were 
()nl\-  four  banks  in  the  i-ntirr  country.  To  supply  needed 
banking  facihties  and  lie  this  powerful  interest  to  the 
national  government.  Hamilton  jjroposed  a  national 
bank.  He  united  this  ])roposal  to  his  debt  plan  in  a  most 
skillful  manner.  The  bank  was  to  ha\e  a  capital  of 
$10,000,000.  The  national  government  took  S2. 000.000 
of  this,  receiving;  in  return  a  loan  of  the  same  amount. 

The  clev  ^"ature  of  the  organization  was  that  the 
certificates  .  .  ..bt  were  to  be  accei)ted  for  75  per  cent  of 
the  vaUu  f  an_.  number  of  shares  of  stock.  .\s  the  bank 
was  assu  '  n  a  monopoly  for  ten  years,  its  stock,  and 
therefore  ...e  certificates  of  debt,  were  above  par  almost 
from  the  beginning.  Vet  it  was  noticed  that  although 
the  shares  were  largely  oversubscribed,  nearly  all  the  pur- 
chasers lived  north  of  the  I\)tomac. 

The  vole  in  Congress  for  its  establishment  was  a  direct 
rellection  of  the  possession  of  the  shares.     The  measure 

the  |iri<.c  (inly  whiih  lie  had  paid  with  intercut.  Hui  this  would  have 
prcvcnli-d  thu  ,^.mic  which  was  to  he  i)layed,  and  for  whiih  the  minds  of 
greedy  niemliers  were  alread>-  tutored  and  prepared.  When  the  trial 
of  strenmli  on  ih'.'>e  ■several  elTorts  h.ul  in(Hiated  the  form  in  which  the 
bill  would  tnially  pass,  this  heing  known  within  doors  sooner  than  without 
and  espeeialK-  than  to  those  who  were  in  distant  |)art3  of  the  Vnion,  the 
base  scramble  be::an.  C'ourier.s  and  relay  horses  by  land,  and  rwift 
P.iiling  pilot  boats  b\-  sea,  were  (lying  in  all  directions,  .  .  .  and  this 
pa[)er  was  boufjht  ii|;  at  ^/  and  even  as  low  as  2/  in  the  pound,  before 
the  Imldcr  knew  th.it  C'o;i;;ress  had  already  pro\  ided  lor  its  redemption 
at  p.ir.  Immense  sums  were  thus  hlched  from  the  i((H)r  and  i;,'norant,  and 
fortunes  accumulated  by  those  who  had  been  poor  enough,  before.  .Men 
thus  enriched  by  the  dexterity  of  a  le.ider  woidd  follow  of  course  the 
( liief  wlio  was  leadini:  them  to  fortune,  and  become  the  zealous  instru- 
ments of  all  hi-  enterpri-e~."  Thi-  |i.is.-ai,'e  has  been  criticized  by  the 
(iefinders  of  Il.imilton  who  h.ue  ikdmed  that  it  accused  Hamilton  of 
dishonest \-.  Tint  it  does  not  do  lliis  is  plain  to  any  unbiased  reader, 
and  there  i.t  every  reason  to  believe  that  it  descriiie^  actual  facts. 


RLLi:   OF   COMMKRCi;   .\M>    FIXANCi: 


II 


was  carried  hv  ihc  solid  vote  oi  ihr  Xortlurii  comniLTiial 
arid  inaiuifa(_liiri!i,i;  >taUs  aiiaiii-l  Uu-  solii'  iippo-ilioii  <it 
the  plaiilalii'ii  staU>  of  the  South. 

Tile  a>>U!ni)tioii  and  fuiidiiiL;  ol"  the  debt  !)>■  the  natioiial 
jZovernmeiU  created  a  hoiidholdiiiiZ.  iiitiTe-t-reci  i\  iiiL,' 
cla>.-i  who  naturally  wor>hi])ed  their  creator.  It  al>o 
made  neces.^arv  a  stead}'  national  income.  If  the  national 
j^overnnient  was  to  pay  money  regularly  and  directly  to 
one  cla>s  of  citizens,  it  mu>t  be  able  to  take  it  directly 
and  re;,'ularl_\'  from  another  class. 

The  next  >tei)  in  Hamilton's  program  included  a  jiro- 
Icctive  tariff  and  an  excise  ta.\.  His  famous  "Report 
on  Ma.nufactures."  submitted  in  advocacy  of  a  protective 
tariff.  i>  admiltedl}-  the  ablest  document  produced  by 
more  than  a  century  of  tariff  discussion.  'I'here  is  one 
essential  point  in  which  his  argument  dilTers  from  that 
offered  by  hi'j;h  taritT  advocates  of  tiie  present  time. 
Hamilton  was  not  troubled  with  univer.sal  suffrage.  It 
was  not  necessary  for  him  to  placate  the  "labor  vote." 
He  s]M)ke  only  from  the  manufacturers'  [)oint  of  view. 
Therefore  he  gave  as  one  of  the  reasons  for  a  tariff  the 
high  wages  paid  in  this  country,  and  proceeded  upon  the 
basis  that  such  wages  were  an  undesirable  handicap  which 
would  be  overcome  as  the  country  grew  older. 

On  the  (|Uestion  of  child  labor  al.so  he  would  scarcely 
use  the  language  a.bout  to  be  (juoted  if  he  were  sjKjkesman 
for  the  present  high  tiiriff.     He  says:  — 

"II  is  worthy  of  particular  remark  that,  in  general, 
women  and  children  are  renclered  more  useful  and  the 
latter  more  early  useful,  by  manufacturing  establish- 
ments, than  they  would  otherwise  be.  Of  the  num- 
ber of  persons  employed  in  the  eoLlun  nianulaclorics  of 


u6 


SOCIAL    FORCKS    I\    A.MI.RICAX    lIlsTOkV 


( ircat  Britain  it  is  compuU'cl  that  four  sevenths  arc  women 
ami  (  hildren,  of  whom  the  ;jreatL'r  i)roi)ortiou  are  children 
and  many  of  a  tender  a<^e.'" 

The  protecti\c  laritT.  aj^'ain,  like  the  bank  and  the 
national  debt,  created  a  class  (the  manufacturers)  pecul- 
iarly dependent  upon  the  national  go\ernment,  and  who 
could  be  reckoned  upon  to  rally  to  its  sujjport  and  to 
demand  further  fax'ors  in  return  for  thai  support. 

■j'lu:  rai)id  <,i;rowth  of  manufactures  was  liindered  by 
the  unwillin<ine>s  of  men  to  work  for  wa<;es  when  a  whole 
.L,'reat  continent  of  untrodden  fertile  land  lay  at  the  west- 
(.rn  doors  of  society  ready  to  yield  up  its  bounty  to  whom- 
e\er  could  .uet  upon  it  and  u>e  his  labor.  Benjamin 
I'Vanklin  had  seen  this  fact  and  had  e.\i<re»ed  an  ojjinion 
that  while  free  land  existed,  manufacturing  would  be  im- 
po>sible  because  no  one  would  work  for  washes. 

This  land  was  now  in  the  hands  of  the  national  govern- 
ment, and  we  lind  this  taking  steps  to  limit  settlement 
and  thereby  create  a  body  of  wageworkers.  Actii^  upon 
the  advice  of  Hamilton,  it  was  provided  that  no  land 
should  be  sold  from  the  public  domain  except  in  plots  of 
not  less  than  nine  square  miles.  To  still  further  debar 
the  small  farmer  the  price  of  even  these  great  tracts  was 
fixed  at  a  minimum  of  two  dollars  an  acre.  liut  lest  the 
wrrk  of  the  land  speculators  should  be  interfered  with. 
long  credit  was  extended  i-O  those  who  could  give  satis- 
factoi'y  s'-curity.' 

'  I'co  Ral.lii'iio.  "  Ann  rii.ui  Ct'innnTi  ial  Poliv  \ ,"  p.  7(1  ct  fc^., explains 
tlu'  working  of  this  [H)!iiy  in  dcUiil  and  adds  :  "  Thus  at  an  t'|)Oth  when 
it  was  not  Net  po^sihlf  to  initiate  a  protot  1  iw  ix>liiv,  which  would  only 
hav<'  made  for  the  interest  of  too  small  a  lis—  of  capitalists,  a  land  pol- 
icy w.is  ntverthrlcss  introduced,  which  fa\drc  1  all  tlie  inter^'^ts  of  the 
cipitalists,   whether   nianufaetur<  rs  —  \>y   excluding   laborers   from   the 


RULE  OF   COMMKRCK   AND   FINANCE 


iI7 


The  moilerately  protective  tariff  and  the  land  policy 
combined  with  a  most  intense  pu'  ic  sentiment  in  tavi)r 
of  domestic  products,  amounting  to  a  boycott  on  foreign 
l)ro(lucts  where  the  domestic  was  attainable,  led  to  a 
rapid  development  oi  manufactures. 

The  e.xcise  tax  tilled  another  role  in  the  working  out  of 
I  lamilton's  plan.  It  had  been  supposed  that  the  national 
government  would  have  no  direct  connection  with  in- 
dividuals, but  would  reach  them  only  through  the  state 
•governments.  It  was  with  this  understanding  that  the 
constitution  had  been  finally  adopted.  This  did  not  suit 
Hamilton's  plans,  nor  the  interests  of  those  he  represented. 
He  wished  to  bring  the  central  government  into  direct 
contact  with  the  citizens  in  their  homes.  This  was  the 
principal  purpose  of  the  tax  upon  the  production  of 
whisky. 

Such  a  tax  was  peculiarly  fitted  to  accomplish  the  pur- 
pose in  view.  It  was  certain  to  bring  about  a  conlliit 
with  a  class  already  hostile  to  the  central  government,  and 
this  a  class  without  influence  in  determining  legislation. 
Corn  was  the  principal  crop  on  the  frontier.  The  rango 
within  which  it  can  be  marketed  in  its  original  form  and 
with  crude  methods  of  transportation  is  extremely  limited. 
It  can,  however,  be  changed  into  two  forms  that  admit 
of  extensive  and  economical  transportation.  —  pork  and 
whisky.  The  second  of  these  affords  by  far  the  greater 
profits.  It  is  therefore  an  invariable  rule  of  historical 
interpretation  that  a  settlement  within  the  corn  belt 
with  imperfect  transportation  facilities  will  always  have 


soil  and  comiK-llinn  them  to  work  for  wages  —or  ;iKricii!turists.  by  Icav- 
ini;  the  field  j)nen  to  sr^eriiKativ-c  undertakings  on  a  larsre  s.rale  excln- 
sively.    See  also  Schnnlcr,  -'History  of  United  States,"  Vol.  I,  pp.  215-216. 


u8 


SOCIAL   rukCES    IN   AMLRICAX   HISTORY 


'■  inoon.^hiiu'  stills."  This  rule  has  held  good  for  more 
than  a  tenUir}'.  and  ck\;r  across  liic  continent,  without 
reganl  lo  the  morality  or  general  law-abiding  character 
of  the  i)oi)ulation. 

The  frontiersmen  of  Pennsylvania  could  see  no  reason 
why  tliey  sliould  not  be  permitted  to  market  their  corn 
as  a  beverage  unhip<lere<i  by  a  revenue  tax.  Perhaps 
some  of  thi-m  had  heard  of  the  patriotic  smugglers  of 
l)re-I\ev(>lutionary  days,  or  thought  that  '"ta.xation 
without  representation"  was  still  a  crime,  and,  since  they 
were  nearly  ill  disfranchised  by  property  qualit'ications, 
t!ie>'  altem])le(l  to  resist  the  law. 

This  gave  Hamilton  the  opportunity  for  which  he  had 
bct'U  waiting.  Although  tlie  "Whisky  Rebellion,"  as 
the  few  isolated  attacks  upon  the  revenue  otficers  were 
called,  was  of  insignit'icant  propijrtions,  Hamilton  suc- 
ceeded in  inducing  Washington  to  call  upon  the  troops 
from  the  neighboring  states,  until  an  army  of  15,000  was 
assembled  and  marched  through  tlie  riotous  localities. 
This  overwhelming  show  of  ft)rce  established  a  i)recedent 
for  direct  interference  by  the  national  government  with 
the  iuLernal  atTairs  of  a  state,  and  ga\e  evidence  of  the 
possession  of  sutlicient  power  to  enforce  the  decrees  of 
the  central  government.' 

This  completed  the  revolution  begun  when  that  con- 
ference was  called  at  .\nnapolis.  The  whole  character 
of  governmental  institutions  had  been  transformed.     The 


'  Dcwoy,  "  I'iii.mc  ial  History  of  the  I'nilnl  States,"  ]).  10^):  "The 
lax  was  nrardeii  with  hostility,  pariiiuiariy  in  the  uKriculli;rai  rei,'ions 
■  it'  tlio  Middle  and  Southern  States.  It  was  asstrted  that  the  lommereiul 
and  ini|M)rtini!  interests  of  New  Knjjland  disliked  the  tariff,  hut  looked 


with  LTcit  i'op.i'.>!a  

were  not  greatly  i.oneerncd.' 


\-    iiT^<\n    'in    nvn^ 


t\(»n     '1  r»    I 


r»  c^  1 1  ^  t 


lK;,!-.    iK„. 


RULi:   OF    CO.MMKRCi:    AND    FIXANCi; 


119 


P"'"  iplcs  of  the  r)cclar;iti()n  of  Ir/lcp-ndfrice  had  lon^ 
hocn  cast  asidi'.  The  spirit  of  dt-niocraty  which  was 
roused  to  win  that  strujj;;;le  hail  been  crushed,  and  social 
control  had  been  vested  in  the  class  whose  lineal  descend- 
ants have  held  it  until  the  present  time.  That  such 
action  was  essential  if  a  great  and  powerful  nation  was 
to  arise  upon  this  continent,  few  will  deny. 

Without  a  strong,  central  government,  controlled  by 
the  commercial  and  manufacturing  class  at  this  time,  it 
would  have  been  impossible  to  have  laid  the  foundation 
for  the  great  development  of  subsequent  years. 


CHAPTER  XI 


RULE  OF  PLANTATION  AND  FRONTIER 


Commerce  had  progressed  with  seven-league  strides 
under  Hamilton's  regime.  Aided  by  the  upheaval  in 
Kui(<pe,  American  foreign  trade  grew  from  $4^^,000,000  in 
1791  fo  $204,000,000  in  1 801.'  Nevertheless,  the  mer- 
chants vvere  driven  f-om  power.  There  were  many 
reasons  for  this,  not  all  of  them  directly  due  to  the  cla.sh 
of  immediate  industrial  interests. 

The  Federalists  seem  to  have  become  drunk  with 
power.  The}'  look  the  unpoi)ular  side  in  the  French 
Revolution,  and  sought  to  suppress  all  expressions  of 
sympathy  with  the  Revolutionists.  The  better  to  do 
this  they  passed  the  "Alien  and  Sedition  Laws."  vesting 
extraordinary  powers  in  the  President  for  the  punish- 
ment of  those  who  criticized  the  government,  and  giving 
him  the  power  summarily  to  deport  foreigners.  There 
was  much  opposition  to  this  growing  centralization  of 
autocratic  power.  This  brought  support  to  other  divi- 
sions of  the  budding  capitalist  class  rather  than  to  the 
merchants. 

The  principal  industrial  divisions  of  the  population 
struggling  for  the  control  of  government  were  the  small 
farmers,  the  frontiersmen,  the  manufacturers,  the  mer- 
chants, and  the  Southern  plantation  owners.  Tt  will  be 
at  once  noted  that  these  overlap  in  the  actual  processes 

'  William  C".  Webster,  "Gcner.il  History  of  Commerce,"  p.  352. 


Rn.H   OF    PLANTATION    AND    !'R()NTII;R 


121 


of  industry.  This  was  still  niort-  true-  of  their  political 
interests.  Consefiuenlly  any  I'Xaet  analysis  of  the  play 
of  in(lu>trial  forces  a>  retlectcl  in  political  events  i.-  al- 
most imi)()ssible. 

Auriculture  in  the  sense  of  small.  diver.Mt'ieil  farming 
was  still  by  far  the  most  common  industry.  It  was  much 
more  "diversified"  than  is  advi^'d  to-day  by  even  the 
most  enthu.-.iastic  oj)ponents  of  "one-croi)'"  farming;. 
The  comi)ilers  of  the  census  of  1810  tell  us  that  they  have 
excluded  many  "doubtful  articles"  from  the  manufac- 
turing schedules,  which 

"...  from  their  very  nature  were  nearly  allied  to  agricul- 
ture, including  cotton  pressing,  tlour  and  meal,  grain  and 
sawmills,  barrels  for  packing,  malt,  pot  and  ju-arl  ashes, 
maple  .:ind  cane  sugar,  molasses,  rosin,  pitch,  slates, 
bricks,  til?s.  saltpeter,  indigo,  red  ami  yellow  ochre, 
hemp  and  hemp  mills,  fisheries,  wine,  ground  plaster, 
etc..  all  together  estimated  at  S?5.S5o,7q5.  making  the 
aggregate  value  of  manufactures  of  every  description  in 
the  United  States  in  iSio  equal  to  $198,613,484." 

Here  we  are  at  the  very  birih  of  the  family  of  modern 
industries  from  the  great  mother  industry  of  agriculture. 
The  whole  process  of  industrial  evolution  consists  of  a 
gradual  separation  of  the  production  of  more  and  more 
"doubtful  articles"  from  farming. 

Many  children  of  agriculture  were  just  preparing  to 
leave  the  farm  at  this  time  and  to  take  up  their  abode  in 
factories.  The  making  of  cloth  was  just  passing  from 
the  "household"  stage,  where  production  is  in  the  family 
and  for  the  family,  to  the  "domestic"  stage,  where,  while 
production  still  goes  on  in  the  home,  the  product  seeks 
an  outside  market. 


I-^-^  SOCIAL    lORCIN    I\    AMl.klCW    Il|~,ri.l;\- 


III!-  (Innif-tic  >taL:r.  of  -.)  imi(  li  Iiii|)i/rta!U  r  in  luiro- 
pc.in  iiiduMrial  lii>t,,r_\-.  \va>  (o  I,  \n\{  a  >hort  tarryini,' 
pla.c  for  Anicriraii  iiidu-tr}-  on  ii>  n.a.l  to  the  fai  (orv. 
'I'hc  two  >ta^cs  wtrr  o\  ( rLipjiiii^  at  \h\>  tiii>r.  The  ^rt-at 
bulk  of  niaiiufadurini;  \va>  still  in  tlu-  houM-hoId  >ta'4c. 
An  important  portion  had  rcai  lii'd  tlir  i)oinl  of  donustic 
prodiKtion  for  niarkct.  Then  \vr  Irarn  that  '•liftccn 
cotton  niilis  wire  rrn  tc<l  in  Ww  Kni:land  hrforc  thc-yi'ar 
kSoS,  working;  at  tliat  tinu'  ahiio-t  ,Sooo  .-pindlfs.  ami  pro- 
du(  iiiLT  ahout  soo.ooo  pound>  of  yarn  a  year.  Rrturns 
had  Intn  rcvcixcd  of  S;  mill,  cni  ted  at  the  end  of  the 
year  i,So(,.  <>2  of  uliitii  wctc  in  oprration,  and  worked 
31,000  spindK'>."  ' 

Hy  1.S12  a  wooknniill  in  Middktown,  (^)nn(rtiiut,  was 
bein-,'  run  by  one  of  ()li\cr  Kvan-"  en.L^ino,  in\ented. 
(le>i,L;ned.  eonstriuted.  and  operatt  .  in  the  I'nited  States.- 
The  relative  importance  of  the  dilYerenl  sta.L'es  of  indus- 
trial i)roduction  of  elolh  is  .-hown  by  the  report  of  the 
census  of  iSio  thai  Ji.211.2O_-  yards  of  linen,  16. 581. 290 
of  cotton,  and  n.^2S,:(,()  of  woolen  <;oo(ls  were  made  in 
families,  out  of  a  total  production  of  about  75.000,000 
\ards.  Xote  that  at  this  period  linen  leads,  with  cotton 
and  woolen  following.  Soon  cotton  will  press  to  the 
front  and  linen  be  found  dragging  far  in  the  rear. 

The  manufacturing  interests  were  still  individualistic, 
or  merged  with  agriculture.  The  tarit'f  had  aided  them, 
but  they  were  not  sufficiently  numerous,  coherent,  nor 
energetic  to  become  a  political  factor.' 

'l.uniKr    lii>h,,[.,    •■History   of   Anirrium    .M.inufa.  lures,"   Vol     II 
p.  1(0.  ' 

"   .V//,'v'  A'<i;/v/,r,  I'lli.  I.  i,Sij,  p.  406. 

IMwin  Si  MiM  . ,.  1,1    "  \  .>,i....v 'r-.»;.T    f^    ...  ...       ... 

■', ""    ■■'■■'•    1  •:::::    V  •.:;:;  r:;\  ;  rsirs  in  IHC  .N  uifUcIi  ( il 

euuury,"  p.   i;_^:    -One  lannol    be  suri-ri.v.d    Uiat  while    the    foreign 


KLLi;   or    PLANTATION    AND    IkoNIllR 


i-^; 


In  the  closiiij:  yrar  of  Wa-hiiiu'ton's  a(lniiiii>tratioii 
an  I'poih-niakini;  invention  liad  ajipLMrcd  that  wrou^lit 
a  rrvolulion  ihrDu^hout  a  broad  -ti  tion  of  the  rountrv. 
Tliis  was  the  'otton  </\n  of  IM  \\'hitiu_\-.  riii>  inven- 
tion was  the  la>t  link  that  madi-  po-r-ihk-  the  la(  tory 
sy-tcm  in  the  cloth  industry.  It  furnished  tde  cheap 
cotton  that  kiid  the  founckition  of  the  factory  >\-,>teni  of 
Kngkind  and  the  work!.  It  increa.-ed  tlie  proihution 
of  cotton  in  the  United  States  one  hundred  fold  in  the 
seven  years  folk)wini^  its  api)earance. 

By  making  prolilal)Ie  the  cultivation  of  the  short- 
t'lhered  upland  cotton  jilant  it  released  chattel  slavery  and 
the  i)lantation  system  from  the  confines  i»f  tlie  tide-water 
re.i^'ion.  and  sent  them  on  their  career  of  concjuest  aloni; 
the  foothills  of  the  Alleghenies  to  Mississip[)i.  Louisiana, 
and  Texas.  It  wijx'd  out.  almost  in  a  day,  the  glimmerini; 
sentiment  for  abolition  which  a  constantly  fallin-.,'  price 
of  skives  had  aroused  in  the  breasts  of  Washinj^ton, 
Jefferson.  Madi.son.  and  other  Virginia  tobacco  growers. 
It  created  a  new  industrial,  and  therefore  a  new  political, 
power,  —  the  skive-owning  cotton  {)lanter.  who  was  so(jn 
to  grasp  at  national  domination,  to  secure  it  after  a  short 
division  of  power  with  allied  forces,  and  '  hen  to  rule  su- 

traflc  was  growing  rapidly  and  while  aKriculturc  was  flourishing  iindL-r 
the  doublu  stimulus  of  a  rapidly  increasinp  and  of  a  profitable  foniL'ti 
\enl  .  .  .  little  attention  should  Ijc  paid  to  the  introduition  of  m.inu 
facturcs.  There  was  ample  emi)loyment  for  all  disjHJsahle  capital  in 
the  tralTii-  v,  liiih  pave  such  larRC  returns;  there  was  no  surplus  lahor 
to  he  drawn  into  new  industrial  enterprises.  Ocrupation  could  he  found 
for  eve-\-  man  with  a  mechaniial  turn  in  huildinR  ships,  in  huilding  and 
furnis'r  ii;  the  new  dwellings  and  sh<)|)s  required  hy  pojiulalion  and  trade, 
in  1)1  ksmithing,  shoemakini;  and  other  trades  connected  with  the 
>iicllw,  food  and  cluLiiing  oi  ,...e  ("eopie."  See  also  succeeding  pages 
to  p.  127. 


I 


124 


>()(I.\I.    lOKCI.S    IN    ANIKKICW    ni>r()RV 


I)r(riu'  lor  niDrc  than  a  m'lU'ration  and  to  l)r  owrtlirown 
()nl\-  when  ihc  \va<,'i'  l)uyinK'  (■a[)it.ili--t  -liould  wrr^l  the 
sif|)tLT  (if  power  by  tour  yc.irs  ol  Icrrihir  ii\il  war. 

'I'liis  nt'W  and  vigorous  industrial  intcrot,  pulsing  with 
powiT,  present  and  potential,  ( ontribuled  stronirlv  to 
tile  overthrow  of  naniihoiii,in  Federaiisni  and  tlie  in- 
stallalion  of  Jeffersonian  indix  idualism,  althou^li,  as  we 
sliall  see.  llie  contrast  was  m)i  so  sharp  as  is  somelinics 
thought. 

It  was  not  the  old  planters  of  the  seaboard  that  placed 
Jefferson  in  the  [iresidential  ehair.  On  the  contrary, 
these  were  more  generally  Federalist  in  their  symjxithies. 
They  were  united  b\-  many  ties  of  the  {)ast.  if  not  of  the 
present,  with  the  Xew  England  merchants.' 

But  the  new  uj^land  cotton  raisers  were  making  com- 
mon cau>e  with  the  back  country  farmers  amid  whon\ 
they  were  living.  With  these  were  allied  the  great  body 
of  frontiersmen  who  had  been  [touring  through  Cumber- 
land Gap.  down  the  Ohio,  and  out  along  the  Genesee 
River  in  Xew  York.  These  men  were  always  separatist, 
individualistic,  and  Jefferson's  philo.^ophy  appealed  to 
them.  Besides  they  had  learned  of  the  opposition  of 
isolated  Xew  England  to  Western  expansion  and  the 
Western  country,  and  this  antagonism  had  not  lost  any- 
thing in  the  telling  as  it  traveled  to  the  West,  and  it  was 
most  cordially  returned  with  ample  interest. 

Jay's  treaty  with  England  in  1794  had  not  provided 
for  the  navigation  of  the  Mississippi  and  had  almost 
raised  a  rebellion  in  the  West  as  a  consequence.  The 
Southern  cotton  planters  were  also  apt  to  remember  that 
John  Jay  had  known  so  little  of  that  industrv  that  he  had 

'  Hassc't,  "The  Federalist  System,"  pp.  45,  46. 


Rri.i:  oi    iM.wr vrioN  and  iijontiik 


t : 


permitted  the  imUi-ion  <il'  an  artirlc  I'orhiuilin^  the  ex- 
port of  (ottoii  in  Anierii  ,in  >liips,  l)eiau:-e  iir  'liil  not  know 
that  lotton  was  an  Ainerii.m  i  rop. 

Tiiese  new  fori  e>,  tlie  baek  eiumtry  f.iriners,  tlu-  fron- 
tiersmen, and  the  new  raee  of  uphind  cotton  phinters, 
tot^'ether  with  the  hou-i'hold  manufai  turers,  made  up  th? 
elements  that  ovtTlhri'W  the  lu'dcral  forci-s. 

Owinti  to  the  eonfu>ion  of  interests,  the  j)residiiitial 
flection  was  extreiiuly  close,  so  close  that  no  one  re- 
ceixfd  a  majority  of  the  electoral  votes.  The  election, 
theref  )re,  went  to  the  House  of  Repri'sentatives.  wlu  re 
Thomas  JelYer>on  was  tho>cn  a>  l*re>ident,  with  Aaron 
Burr  a.--  \'ice  President.  This  ri'sult  was  not  accom- 
plislied  without  some  political  intrij;ue  on  the  part  of 
Hamilton  and  Aaron  lUirr,  in  which  a  new  fone  wa->  in- 
troduced into  American  politico  by  the  latter.  This 
was  the  famous  Tammany  Society  of  Xew  \"ork.  which 
had  been  founded  us  a  social  and  philanthropic  society 
in  ijSq.' 

Before  the  Federalists  lost  control,  they  took  one  more 
long  step  in  the  perfection  of  the  program  of  centraliza- 
tion and  removal  of  the  government  from  democratic 
control.  They  had  formulated  the  constitution  ii.  secret, 
secured  ii:i  adoption  by  deceit  and  gerrymandering, 
extended  its  provisions  by  shrewd  legislation,  and  made 
it  clearly  an  instrument  of  class  government.  The  next 
step  was  to  remove  the  fmal  power  of  control  from  the 
people  and  vest  it  in  the  courts.  The  first  move  toward 
the  accomplisliment  of  this  was  a  series  of  laws  |)assed 
during  the  very  last  days  of  Federal  rule,  inreasing  the 

'  M.  Ostro^orsKi,  "  wcn'iocracy  uuG  mc  Or^inizuLion  of  Pwuiiv.ai 
Parties,"  \'ol.  II,  pp.  151^-153. 


i:() 


•-n(|\l,    FOKCr.S    I\    A.MIklCW    III>r<)KV 


nuriihrr  <if  ((mrt>  f.ir  Ix'vond  tlu'  iifcds  of  tlif  country  at 
tile  liiiif.  l'A(r\  pl.uf  thus  (Tratfil  \va>  at  oiu  i'  filkd 
witli  a  sta'uti  l•'c•(ll•r.lli^t.  'I'ra<litii)n  >ay-- that  the  work 
(if  -i^'uiri;,'  thf  (■()mnii»i()ns  of  thou  jud^e-s  was  stopped 
otdy  whfu  a  nusscnmT  from  JcllVrson  stayed  the  hand 
of  the  >(•(  rrtary  at  n!i(hii;^ht,  March  v'- 

IlaNint;  thus  itih  ted  a  -uprfmc  power  lj(\-ond  the  reach 
of  the  people,  they  plaeed  at  the  head  of  tin-  judieiary 
a  nian  who  was  to  earry  this  usurpation  of  power  to  the 
uttermost  limits  and  to  tix  it  there  for  a  century  to  i:()mc. 
This  man  was  John  Marshall,  who  occupied  the  position 
of  Chief  Justic  e  of  t lie  Supreme  Court  for  thirty-four  years, 
receiving,'  his  a[)pointment  in  iSot.  I)urin>^  this  time  he 
constantly  extended  and  strengthened  the  power  of  his 
olTice  until  it  reached  proportions  undreamed  of  even 
by  those  who  founded  this  government,  with  the  possible 
cxcejjtion  of  Hamilton.' 

Lest  it  may  be  thought  that  I  exaggerate  the  extent  of 
the  re\<)lutionary  usurpation  of  power  by  Marshall  and 
its  intluence  on  subseciuent  history,  I  will  quote  from 
an  authoritative  legal  work  at  this  point.  Joseph  P. 
Cotton,  in  his  "Constitutional  Decisions  of  John  Mar- 
shall," says:  — 

''In  tSoi  one  of  these  'midnight  judges.'  Marbury, 
apj)lied  for  a  mandamus  to  require  the  issue  of  his  com- 
mission, and  in  1S03  Marshall  delivered  his  opinion  on 
that  ai^plication.  This  opinion  is  the  beginning  of 
American  constitutional  law.     In  it  Marshall  announced 

'  Tlif-  Ffdi-raUsi,  \o.  LXXX,  "Extent  of  the  .Xuthority  of  the  Judi- 
ciary," l)y  H.uiiilton,  contains  a  passaRc  that  may  f)ossil)ly  l)c  uniier- 
stiMxi  to  imply  the  e\i>tinie  of  sikh  (K)wer,  t)ut  this  is  doubtful,  and  it 
Is  HI  1,1111  liuii  11(1  one  ( i.mneii  il  o[)eiiiy  at  tile  lime  of  the  a(io[)lion  of 
the  constitution. 


kLi.i:  oi    I'l.wi  \i  i<)\  AM)  ikoMiik 


•-7 


the  ri^ht  of  the  Suijreiiu'  Court  to  rr\  icw  tlic  ton^titu- 
lionalily  (it  llie  at  l>  ol  the  ii.ilioii.il  Ir^i-Liluri'  .iii<l  the 
fXCTUlive,  the  cooniiiiatc  hraiHhi':^  ot  the  ^o\ frmnciit. 
Suili  a  ixiucr  liad  Ijeeii  >i)oktii  of  in  t  ertaiii  opinioin,  and. 
indeed,  acted  upon  iv  'ininiportanl  ia>e.>i  in  the  •'talc 
L()urt>.  but  ne\er  in  the  Federal  courts.  Common  as 
this  eoruei)tion  of  our  eourts  now  i>,  ii.  i>  hard  to  eom- 
pri'liend  the  ama/in^  (|ualil>  of  it  tluii.  Xo  (Durt  in 
Fn;,'Iand  liad  >ueh  powiT  ;  thire  \va>  no  r\[>ri-^-<  warrant 
t'or  it  in  tlie  woriU  of  tlie  Constitution;  the  e\i>tenie  of 
it  wa--  denied  by  every  otlier  branch  of  the  ^'overnment 
and  b}-  the  donunant  majority  of  the  country.  Morc-- 
over.  no  sueh  power  had  l)een  c  learly  anticipated  by  the 
fr.imer>  of  thr'  Constitution,  nor  was  it  a  neee>.sar\  im- 
pHcation  from  tlie  scheme  of  «^o\ernmenl  they  hail  es- 
tablished. If  that  doctrine  were  to  be  law.  the  Supreme 
Court  was  indeed  a  linal  power  in  a  democracy,  beyond 
the  reach  of  public  opinion." 

This  completed  the  process  of  usurpation  of  power  and 
destruction  of  democratic  control  which  was  be^'un  with 
the  I'lr-t  arrangements  for  a  constitutional  coiuention. 
With  thi-  power  to  declare  laws  unconstitutional  in  its 
possession  the  Supreme  Court  posses>eci  an  ab>olute  veto 
on  all  legislation  and  was  it.elf  out  of  the  reach  of  the 
voters. 

JelTerson,  the  representative  of  Southern  plantation  and 
frontier  farmer  interests,  has  always  been  hailed  as  the 
j)rophet  of  clemocracy.  But  his  democracy,  in  accordance 
with  the  interests  he  represented,  was  that  of  individual- 
ism, of  pliilosophic  anarchy,  rather  than  of  associated 
elTort  under  common  management.  The  cotton  plan- 
tation owner,  whose  working  class  of  chattel  slaves  was 


128 


SOCIAL  FORCLS   IN   AMKKIC.'s  \    HISTORY 


forever  debarred  from  polit'  al  activity,  co'ild  easily 
champion  this  democracy.  He  would  enfranchise  the 
Northern  \va,<;evvoi kers  whom  he  hoped,  and  ri<,'htly.  as 
subse(juent  events  showed,  might  become  his  allies 
against  the  Northern  merchants  and  manufacturers. 
The  i)it)neer  was  always  democratic  in  this  individualistic 
sense.  Class  distinctions  had  not  yet  arisen  on  the  fron- 
tier. Ohio,  Kentucky,  and  Tennessee,  which  were  ad- 
mitted to  the  Union  during  this  period,  were  the  tirst 
states  to  embod}'  universal  suffrage  in  their  constitutions. 

This  alliance  between  planter  and  frt)ntiersmap  is  the 
key  to  the  political  policy  of  much  of  this  period.  This 
alliance  was  easier  at  this  time  than  at  any  later  period. 
Western  emigration  was  largely  from  the  Southern  states. 
The  great  stream  of  peoples  was  flowing  from  \'irginia 
and  the  Carolinas  through  the  Cumberland  Gap  inU) 
Kentucky  and  Tennessee.  The  South  saw  in  this  move- 
ment an  extension  of  its  power  into  the  future  as  well  as 
geographically. 

Much  of  the  work  of  Jefferson  was  connected  with  the 
West.  He  had  been  active  in  formulating  the  Ordinance 
of  1787  for  the  government  of  the  Northwest  Territory 
during  the  dying  days  of  the  Confederation,  and  his  in- 
terest in  the  Western  movement  had  always  been  close. 
He  devised  the  system  of  land  survey  by  townships, 
ranges,  and  sections,  that  has  done  so  much  to  make 
American  real  estate  more  thoroughly  a  commodity  than 
the  land  of  any  other  country.  He  bought  Louisiana,  sent 
Lewis  and  Clark,  and  Pike  to  explore  the  Far  W\>st,and 
began  the  famous  Cumberland  Road  as  a  part  of  an  ex- 
tensive system  of  internal  improvements.  During  this 
period  Congress  was  always  willing  to  appropriate  money 


RULE  OF  PLANTATION  AND  FRONTILR 


129 


for  the  settlement  of  Indian  claims,  or  for  the  defense  of 
the  frontier  in  Indian  wars. 

To  all  these  measures  the  Xew  England  commercial 
interests  were  hostile.  To  a  certain  extent  this  was  a 
result  of  sectional  isolation  as  well  as  material  interests. 
Xew  England  had  developed  a  most  intense  sectional 
life,  vith  its  own  customs,  prejudices,  dialects,  religion, 
and  local  patriotism,  and  because  of  the  intensive  char- 
acter of  these  ideas  and  institutions,  was  to  impress  them 
deeply  upon  large  sections  of  the  country. 

Such  isolation  and  concentration  of  thought  and  in- 
terests and  policy  were  bound  to  become  separatist  when 
they  were  antagonized.  When  the  Federalists  under 
Adams  passed  the  Alien  and  Sedition  Laws,  Kentucky  and 
\'irginia  passed  resolutions  hinting  at  secession.  Now 
the  South  and  West  were  in  control,  with  Virginia  domi- 
nant, and  it  was  the  turn  of  Xew  England,  with  Massa- 
chusetts at  the  head,  to  become  "treasonable."  For 
several  years  this  section  was  openly  to  advocate  and 
secretly  to  plot  secession  until  another  turn  in  industrial 
development  should  give  Xew  England  interests  the 
ruling  hand,  when  the  doctrine  of  secession  would  once 
more  take  up  its  abode  in  the  South.* 

It  was  the  purchase  of  Louisiana  that  particularly 
aggravated  the  Xew  England  states.  This  was  an  appli- 
cation of  their  own  philosophy  in  regard  to  the  constitu- 
tion.   There  was  no  provision  in  that  instrument  for 

*  McMaster,  "History  of  the  People  of  the  United  States,"  Vol.  Ill, 
pp.  42-48;  Wilson,  ".\  History  of  the  American  People,"  Vol.  Ill, 
p.  184;  HiUlrilh,  "History  of  the  United  Slates,"  Vol.  V,  p.  584;  Von 
Hoist,  "Constitutional  History  of  the  United  Slates,"  Vol.  I,  pp.  185- 
186. 


^^W^^^iTW^- 


I30 


SOCIAL    FORCHS   I.\    AMHKICAX    HISTORY 


the  purrl'u'.se  of  new  territDfy.  and  no  I  edcralist  had 
ever  ^ivcn  as  "liberal  conslrucUon "'  to  a  constitutional 
(jueslion  as  did  Jefferson  when  he  purchasi^'d  Louisiana, 
and  proxided  for  its  government  directly  from  the 
national  capital  without  the  consent  of  the  inhabitants, 
and  with  little  more  than  a  notification  to  Congress. 

Hciwe\er  discontented  Xew  England  might  be,  it  could 
not  be  denied  that  her  merchants  were  prosperous.  The 
high  tide  of  .\nierican  commerce  was  reached  in  1810  with 
a  total  tonnage  of  1,424,783  tons.  Xew  England  ships 
were  in  every  harbor.  The  Oriental  trade  had  become 
especially  jirofitable.  The  road  to  India  was  at  last 
running  through  America,  though  not  e.xactly  as  Colum- 
bus had  dreamed. 

With  the  beginnings  of  a  factory  system  and  the  rise 
of  a  body  of  wageworkers  there  appear  tiaces  of  organized 
labor  and  a  struggle  between  employers  and  employees. 
The  j)etitions  to  Congress  for  higher  tarilT  and  for  relief 
and  assistance  for  various  industries  all  complain  of  the 
high  wages  which  must  be  paid.  Such  a  complaint 
indicates  several  things  in  addition  to  the  political  im- 
potence of  the  wageworkers.  It  is  a  fairly  sure  sign  that 
wages  were  rising,  rather  than  that  they  were  already 
high.     McMaster  concludes  from  his  investigations  that.* 

"The  rates  of  wages  were  dilTerent  in  each  of  the  three 
great  belts  along  which  population  was  streaming  west- 
ward. The  highest  rates  were  paid  in  the  Xew  England 
belt,  which  stretched  across  the  country  from  Massachu- 
setts to  Ohio.  The  lowest  rates  prevailed  in  the  southern 
belt,  which  extended  from   the  Carolinas  to  Louisiaaa. 

'  "Hi~lor\  of  till-  I'lupli'  (if  till-  fniliil  Slatis,"  \'o].  Ill,  pp.  5Ck;-515, 
i.s  a  miuil  .surxi'v  ul  laljur  cuiidilioiis. 


u 


^.-^.f^^^^--;^.-  'Wf^^m 


RULK   OF   PLANTATION   AND    FRONTIKR 


131 


In  each  of  these  bands  again  wages  were  lowest  on  the 
Athintic  se.'iboanl.  and.  increasing  ra{)idly  in  a  western 
direction,  were  greatest  in  the  Mississippi  \'alley." 

A  contemj)orary  authority  furnishes  an  estimate  of  the 
wages  paid  at  tliis  time  in  the  most  northern  belt,  where 
they  were  supposed  to  be  the  highest.  His  figures  are 
as  follows  : '  ^ 

1774  1R04  1R07  iRo<i 

Wages  per  day    .     .     .     .  S.50  S.75  S.75  $.80 


Wheat  per  bushel 


■65 


o:> 


I. 


Ji 


1. 00 


These  wages  were  certainly  not  high  enough  to  seem 
to  require  any  action  on  the  part  of  Congress  to  enable 
the  employers  to  pay  them.  The  figures  for  the  last  two 
years  given  above  confirm  the  general  impression  that 
wages  were  rising  at  this  time.  Skilled  workmen  were 
beginning  to  organize  unions,  and  here  and  there  strikes 
took  place. 

Strikes  and  unions  were  still  illegal.  When  the  cord- 
wainers  (a  branch  of  the  shocmaking  trade)  went  out  on 
strike  in  Philadelphia  in  1805,  they  were  convicted  of 
conspiracy  and  fined,  after  which  they  opened  up  a  shop 
of  their  own  and  appealed  to  the  public  for  patronage. 

In  Xew  York  the  growth  of  a  wageworking  class  was 

'  A' //('.?'  Regislrr,\'<'>\.  I.  p.  70  (quoting  from  HlcxlKct's  "Kionomic  s  "  ; 
Mc.Muster,  in  Atlantic  Monthly.  Vol.  LXXV,  p.  22,  says  of  iSoo:  "Sol- 
diers in  the  army  rci  civcd  thri'f  dollars  a  month.  I'arm  liano  n  New 
Kin;lan(l  were  Kivcn  $4  a  month  and  found  their  own  clothes.  I'nskilli-d 
lahori'rs  toiled  twelve  hours  i)er  day  tor  fifty  cents.  Workmen  on  turn- 
pikes, then  branchini;  out  in  every  direttion,  were  housjd  in  rude  sheds, 
fed  coarse  food,  and  j^'ven  $4  a  month  from  November  to  .\!ay  ami 
$0  from  May  to  November.  When  the  road  from  Oenesee  River  to 
liulTalo  was  under  construction  in  1812,  though  the  re^lDn  through  which 
II  Went  was  frontier,  men  were  hired  in  i>lent\'  f'.)r  5!2  !>er  month  in  ra.Hh 
and  their  board,  lodgini;.  and  a  daily  allowance  of  whisky." 


1^ 


132 


SOCIAL   FOKCJ.S   IN   AMKRICAN   HISTORY 


^i-Mi 


havinp  anDlhcr  effect.  Here  it  was  laying  the  foundations 
for  (icniocracy.  During  tlic  lime  of  the  Revolution,  the 
a(loi)tion  of  the  constitution,  and  the  llaniiltonian  re- 
gime, the  projjerty  (jualifuations  for  office  and  even  for 
the  suffrage  were  so  high  that  the  wageworking  class 
was  ignored  by  the  politicians.  Xor  were  the  memb(.-rs 
of  tin's  clas^  .^ufriciently  numerous  to  make  any  etTective 
protest  against  this  disfranchisement.' 

During  the  first  decade  of  the  nineteenth  century,  how- 
ever, a  spirit  of  rebellion  against  these  restrictions  began 
to  i)e  felt  in  Xew  \'ork.  This  first  germ  of  a  labor  move- 
ment sought  to  widen  the  political  pow(.'rs  as  well  as 
improve  the  industrial  condition  of  its  members.  In 
New  York  some  success  was  achieved  in  this  direction, 
and  at  once  there  appeared  that  other  jihase  of  class  rule 
under  the  form  of  democracy,  the  political  machine. 
I'p  to  this  time  candidates  had  been  nominated  either 
by  informal  gatherings  of  ''prominent  citizens''  or  by 
caucuses  of  members  of  the  state  legislatures  or  Con- 
gress.- Now  there  were  signs  of  so-called  "popular'' 
caucuses,  and  appeals  began  to  be  made  to  labor. 

On  the  whole,  this  was  a  period  of  the  beginning  of 
things  that  are  familiar  features  of  the  society  of  three 
cjuarters  of  a  century  later.  It  was  to  be  a  generation, 
however,  before  any  of  these  forces  were  to  become 
prominent,  social  features. 

Jefferson  went  into  oflice  as  the  exporjnt  of  the  idea 

'  "  Mcniori.il  Historv  of  New  York,"  \iil.  Ill,  pp.  :.vi4  ;  McMastcr, 
''Ili-lory  of  thi'  rcoi)lc-  of  the  United  Stalt.^;."  \ol.  Ill,  Chap.  X\II; 
.\ili  ,'  A'(i;/s/ir,  \'ol.  I,  pp.  80-81,  contains  table  of  electoral  cjualitua- 
ti'Mis  in  all  states. 

"  0!^troL''>rski.  "  Dtmocracv  and  ih'j  ( .'rL'anizatiors  o!  '^'o'.itica!  Parties." 
Vol.  11,  p.   IJ. 


-•:T?""\- 


--:'*Jiir- 


'-*i::^i% 


m 


RULE  OF  PLANTATION  AND  FRONTIKR 


133 


that  the  constitution  sliould  be  "strictly  construed," 
that  the  central  government  shoukl  be  closely  limited 
in  its  powers,  and,  above  all,  should  never  be  used  to 
serve  sectional  or  class  interests.  Vet  never  was  the 
constitution  stretched  farther  than  by  the  purchase  of 
Louisiana  and  its  government  direct  from  the  White 
House.  The  powers  which  the  Federal  government  ex- 
ercised in  the  preliminary  steps  to  the  War  of  181 2,  when 
an  embargo  was  laid  on  all  commerce  and  Federal  offi- 
cers were  given  the  right  of  search  and  seizure,  exceeded 
anything  done  by  Hamilton.  The  fact  that  the  pos- 
session of  centralized  power  led  Jefferson  to  use  and  ex- 
tend that  power  in  the  inter.  ^  of  those  to  whom  he  owed 
his  election,  is  noted  by  nearly  all  historians.  Although 
he  came  into  office  talking  of  the  "revolution"  due  to 
his  election,  yet, 

"The  great  mass  of  the  men,  who  in  1800  voted  for 
Adams,  could  in  1804  see  no  reason  whatever  for  voting 
against  Jefferson.  Scarcely  a  Federal  institution  was 
missed.  They  saw  the  debt,  the  bank,  the  navy,  still 
preserved  ;  they  saw  a  broad  construction  of  the  consti- 
tution, a  strong  government  exercising  the  rights  of  sov- 
ereignty, paying  small  regard  to  the  rights  of  States,  and 
growing  more  and  more  national  day  by  day,  and  they 
gave  it  a  hearty  support,  as  a  government  administered 
on  the  principles  for  which,  ever  since  the  constitution 
was  in  force,  they  had  contended."  ' 

»  McMaster,  loc.  cit.,  VoL  III,  p.  198. 


CHAPTER   XII 


THE   WESTWARD  MAKCH  OF  A  PEOPLE 


It  has  been  noted  that  with  Jefferson  a  new  political 
force  first  made  itself  felt  in  national  politics.  This  was 
the  frontier.  This  ever  moving  frontier  has  been  the  one 
distinctive  feature  of  American  society.  A  full  under- 
standing of  its  influence  unlocks  many  a  difficult  problem 
in  that  history. 

He  who  would  write  the  history  of  Greece,  Italy,  or 
England  has  but  to  describe  the  life  of  a  body  of  people 
occupying  a  peninsula  in  the  Mediterranean,  or  an  island 
on  the  edge  of  the  Atlantic.  The  scene  of  his  story  is 
fixed.  But  the  history  of  the  United  States  is  the  de- 
scription of  the  march  of  a  mighty  army  moving  westward 
in  conquest  of  forest  and  prairie. 

The  inundating  ocean  of  population  was  held  for  a 
moment  by  the  great  Alleghenian  dam.  At  the  period  we 
ha  considering,  it  had  just  sought  out  the  low 

place.  ...1(1  the  unguarded  ends  and  was  flowing  through 
and  around  that  dam.  Along  the  buffalo  paths,  the 
Indian  trails,  and  down  the  open  rivers  it  was  flowing  into 
the  great  Mississippi  N'allcy.  As  it  flowed  it  widened 
the  forest  trails  for  the  pack  trains.  ;ind  graded  them  for 
turnpikes,  and  finally  leveled  the  hills  and  spanned  the 
rivers  with  bridges  on  which  to  lav  the  iron  track  of  the 
locomotive. 

134 


THE  WF.S-nVARD    MARCH   OF   A    PF.OPLE 


135 


t 


This  army  had  its  scouts,  its  advance  guard,  its  sap- 
pers and  miners,  its  army  of  occupation.  These  various 
battalions  reproduced  in  turn  the  various  social  stages 
through  which  the  race  has  passed.  Hiology  has  taught 
us  that  the  embryo  reproduces  in  syncopated  form  the 
various  steps  in  the  evolution  of  living  organisms.  The 
ethnologists  and  the  pedagogue  know  that  in  the  same 
manner  the  child  moves  through  mental  stages  much  like 
those  along  which  the  race  has  traveled.  In  the  same 
manner  the  successive  stages  of  settlement  in  the  march 
of  America's  army  of  pioneers  tells  again  the  story  of 
social  evolution. 

The  advance  guard  of  hunters,  trappers,  fishermen, 
scouts,  and  Indian  fighters  reproduced  with  remarkable 
fidelity  the  social  stage  of  savagery.  They  lived  in  rude 
shelters  built  of  logs  or  of  prairie  sod.  found  their  food 
and  clothing  by  the  chase,  gathered  around  personal 
leaders,  were  often  lawless,  brutal,  and  quarrelsome, 
though  frequently  they  displayed  the  even  more  charac- 
teristically savage  traits  of  taciturn  silence  and  fatalistic 
courage.  These  men  penetrated  hundreds  of  miles  into 
the  wilderness  ahead  of  all  fixed  settlements.  They 
sometimes  fraternized  and  lived  with  the  Indians.  Such 
were  the  French  couriers  du  bois,  who  gathered  furs  from 
Hudson  Bay  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  e.\i)loring  rivers  that 
have  found  place  upon  the  maps  only  within  the  last  few 
decades. 

When  these  scouts  had  spied  out  the  land  the  first 
body  of  the  main  army  of  conquest  appeared.  This  was 
composed  of  the  little  groups  of  settlers  who  clustered 
along  the  watercourses  and  the  main  lines  of  advance. 

These  settlements,  drawn  together  fi)r  mutual  defense 


136 


SOCIAL    lOkCKS   IN   AMKRICAX   HISTORY 


apainst  the  Indians,  the  wild  beasts,  and  the  forest  fires, 
and  for  mutual  coojx-ration  in  house-raisinj^'s,  husking, 
quillinj^,  and  lopginj;  "bees,"  with  their  'common" 
pastures  in  the  surrounding  forest  and  their  democratic 
social  and  political  organization,  were  so  much  like  the 
(iermanic  "tuns"  described  by  Tacitus,  and  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  villages  of  jire-Xorman  days,  that  one  of  the  fore- 
most American  historians  gravely  explains  the  resem- 
blance by  the  classical  reading  of  Xew  England  Puritans. 

The  people  who  formed  this  stage  were  migratory.  Xo 
sooner  had  they  carved  out  a  little  dearii  4  in  the  wilder- 
ness than  they  moved  on  to  take  up  the  same  task  farther 
west.  They  too  rallied  around  leaders,  generally  com- 
bined hunting  and  lishing  with  farming,  and  in  every 
war  in  which  the  United  States  has  been  involved,  save 
the  latest,  formed  its  most  ctTective  fighters.' 

With  this  .social  stage  came  the  beginnings  of  agricul- 
ture. It  was  a  crude  cultivation  of  the  soil  that  borrowed 
its  methods  as  well  as  its  only  important  crop  from  the 
Indians.  This  crop,  around  which  the  agricultural  life 
of  large  sections  of  the  country  has  centered  up  to  the 
present  time,  was  Indian  corn,  or  maize.  This  plant 
seems  to  have  been  esjiecially  evolved  to  meet  the  con- 
ditions of  the  American  frontier.     Without  it  another 

'  T.  Rodsevelt,  "The  Winning  of  th.  .u-st,"  \o\.  V,  p.  128:  "The 
men  who  sittK'  in  ;i  new  country  and  F)c«in  suhduinR  the  wilderness 
plunRe  back  into  the  very  conditions  from  which  the  race  has  raised 
itself  hy  the  slow  toil  of  a^es.  The  (onditions  cannot  hut  tell  ujwn  them. 
Inivilal)ly,  and  for  more  than  one  lifetime,  .  .  .  they  tend  to  retrograde 
instead  of  advancing.  They  drop  away  from  the  standard  which  hiirhly 
civilized  nations  have  reaihed.  .\s  with  harsh  and  dangerous  labor 
they  brini!  the  new  land  up  toward  the  level  of  the  old,  thev  themselves 


stale  of  their  ages-dead  barbarian  forefathers. 


'arci 


TIIK   WKSTWAKI)    MAKCII   OF   A    rKOPI.K 


'J/ 


generation  or  more  would  Ikivc  Inrn  ri'-iuired  for  the  ad- 
vancing army  of  seUlenical  to  ha\o  reaclu'd  the  .Mi>sis- 
sippi. 

It  can  be  j;ro\vn  in  the  midst  of  tlie  forest  if  tlu-  trees 
be  "girdled"  by  temoving  a  ring  of  bark,  which  causes 
the  leaves  to  fall  until  the  sunlight  can  tilter  through. 
A  sharpened  stake  will  do  for  a  planting  tool  if  nothing 
better  is  at  hand.  It  will  produce  a  considerable  crop 
from  virgin  soil  with  little  cultivation,  and  re>ponds  richly 
to  added  care.  It  grows  rapidly,  and  its  green  ears  furnish 
food  early  in  the  season.  When  ripe,  it  is  easy  of  storage, 
is  not  injured  by  freezing,  contains  a  great  amount  of 
nourishment  in  small  bulk.  and.  wtuit  is  perhaps  most  im- 
portant of  all,  can  be  most  easily  prepared  for  food.  In 
no  one  of  the  varii)us  forms  in  which  it  entered  into  the 
dietary  of  the  pioneer  was  any  elaborate  preparation  re- 
quired. On  a  pinch  an  open  lire  to  roast  th(.'  green  ears 
or  the  ripened  kernels  sufiiced  to  satisfy  hunger.  It  took 
the  place  of  the  pastures  to  which  the  colonists  had  been 
accustomed  in  Europe.  As  higher  stages  of  agriculture 
were  reached  it  became  the  foundation  of  the  entire  live- 
stock industry  of  the  nation.' 

Following  this  stage  in  the  East,  and  preceding  it  in 
the  West,  where  the  Indians  were  held  back  by  the  regu- 

'  Roosevelt,  "WinninRof  the  West,"  \'ol.  I,  pp.  iio-iii  ,  Massai  hii- 
setts  .\Krirultural  Rejwrt,  iS^^.  p.  48,;  Siidnev,  "  L'so  of  Maize  hy 
Wisconsin  Indians."  p.  71;  Sliaier,  "The  l'nite<i  Slates  of  America. " 
\'ol.  I,  [)p.  26-27;  Census  of  18S0,  volume  ()n"Aurieiiiture,"  Part  I,[).  i  vs  ; 
J.  II.  Salisbury,  "History  and  Chemical  Investigation  of  .Mai/e  "  ;  Parkin- 
son, "  Tour  in  North  .\merica."  pp.  ioS-iqo  ;  I>rake,  ■"  I'ioneer  Lil'e  in  Ken- 
tucky," pp.  47-57;    Michaux,  "Travels,"  etc..  Chap.  XII.     These  ar^- 

some  of  the  works  discussinK  the  im|)<)rtance  of  corn  in  this  sta^e  of 
A_.._: u:-. 1  .1 _:i.: .i.«  „„«u„j,.  i l,;.v,  :•  ,...,0  ,,,li:.. ■>•..,] 

and  prepared  for  consumption. 


.»i-'i 


r.vS        so(  iM,  roRci;.s  i\  amkruan  iiistokv 

lar  army  and  not  driven  out  by  the  frontiersmen,  came 
a  third  division  composed  of  the  ouboys.  herdsmen, 
ranchmen,  as  they  were  variously  called.  Here  we  lind' 
a  reproduction  of  many  features  o'"  tiie  nomadie  sta|,'e  of 
.social  evolution.  When  the  race  pa>-,<i  through  this 
period,  the  lar^e  social  unit  which  the  care  of  the  herds 
demand.,  was  supplied  by  the  patriarc  hal  lamilv  so  famil- 
iar in  the  i)a^es  of  the  Old  Testament.  In  .America  the 
rancher  with  his  force  of  cowboys,  cooks,  etc..  formed  a 
very  similar  self-suj.porlinK  unit.  We  are  accustomed 
to  think  of  this  sta<,'e  as  having  been  confmed  to  the  r- 
oncl  half  of  the  nineteenth  century  and  the  Great  Plains 
rej,'ion. 

Like  the  other  social  stages,  however,  it  has  traveled 
across  the  continent.  It  existed  wherever  abundant 
pasture  could  be  found,  not  yet  divided  into  farms,  and 
not  too  far  from  a  market  to  permit  the  driving  of  the 
cattle  to  the  place  of  slaughter.  This  sta^^e  was  found 
prior  to  the  Revolution  in  the  Carolinas  and  Virginia,  on 
the  eastern  slcjpe  of  the  Alle^henies.'      It  came  over  the 

'  John  11.  LoKan.  "Ilislory  <.f  the  Tppcr  Countrv  of  South  Carolina," 
siHakinK  of  prircvohilionary   time's,  says   rp,,.  151    ,sj):  ".\„t  far  from 
the  loK  hut    of  the    huntiT  stoo.l   that   of    the  <  ..u-driver.  .  .  .     The 
husiness  of  stork-raising  at  this  time  on  llie  fn,niier  was  s.anely  less 
profitable  than  it  is  at  present   (,85,,)   in  similar  rej:i.,ns  of  the  West 
•   •   .     Havm«   selected   a    tract    wh.Te   e.me   an.l    pea-vines   ^rew    most 
Inxunantly.  ihey  erected  in  the  midst  of  it  tempnr.irv  cal.in^  an.l  spa- 
cious iK'ns.      These  were  used  as  inclosures  in  whi>  h  to  collect  the  cattle 
at  proper  seasons,  for  the  purpose  of  ..nuUinu-  and  hrandin-  them-   and 
from  many  such  places  in  the  u[)per  ...untrv,  va,!   nuniluTs  „f  h'eeves 
were  annually  driven  to  the  distant  markets  of  Charleston.  Philadelphia 
an.l   even    New    Vork.   .   .   .     These   rude   estahlishments   hecame   after- 
war.is,   wherever   they   were  formed,  the   ^reat    .enters  of  settlements 
founded  Ijy  the  cultivators  of  the  soil,  wh,,  f.,!!o<.v(d.  I--.!  !..,.!,;n.l  tl-.t-  .  ,,- 
drivers  in  their  cnterprisinj;  search  for  unapprojiriated  producliveiands." 


THi:   WKSTWARD    MARCH   OF   A    PKOI'Li; 


139 


mountains  behind  tht  'vnttTS,  trappers,  and  conquerors 
of  the  wilderness  and  liourishod  in  the  wild  [)ea  pastures 
alonj^  ihe  (Jhio.  By  1830  this  stage  was  reached  on  the 
prairies  of  Illinois ;  a  decade  later  it  had  crossed  the 
Mississippi,  where  it  was  to  reach  its  final  spectacular 
cniorcscence  on  the  Ureut  Phdns  at  the  foot  of  the 
Rockies. 

Following  the  ranch  came  the  small  farmer,  permanent 
towns,  manufacturing,  and  the  general  features  of  the 
small,  competitive  system.  Trom  here  on  to  the  present 
the  course  of  evolution  will  be  considered  under  other 
heads. 

Within  each  of  these  stages,  and  more  especially  the 
latter,  there  have  been  minor  divisions  that  have  moved 
across  the  country  within  the  general  army  at  appro.x- 
imately  the  same  rate  of  speed.  Some  of  these  divisions 
have  never  occupied  certain  sections.  Changes  in  meth- 
ods of  transportation  have  fundamentally  altered  the 
whole  order  of  progress  of  the  army.  Vet  in  spite  of  these 
deviations  from  the  ideal  simplicity  that  has  been 
sketched,  the  mighty  fact  of  these  onward  marching 
battalions  of  society  is  the  dominant  feature  of  Amer- 
ican history,  without  a  grasp  of  which  that  history  is  an 
almost  unintelligible  maze. 

When  we  speak  of  the  "frontier."  therefore,  it  is  neces- 
sary that  we  say  which  frontier  is  meant,  for  the  ad- 
vancing crest  of  each  of  these  waves  has  been  the  frontier 
for  that  social  stage.  The  word  is  most  frequently 
applied  to  the  stage  in  w^hich  the  wilderness  was  cleared, 
the  prairie  sod  broken,  and  the  land  made  fit  for  agricul- 
«ii^^-»  As  it  is  \!'^f*'l  hon^^f— rth  in  th-'^  work,  unless  (^thor- 
wise  defined,  it  will  be  applied  to  that  whole  series  of 


-sffOv 


"^--,Sg,0aWj^" 


:9fe^ 


140 


SO(  lAL    lOkCI.S    IN    AMKRICAN    HISTORY 


frontRT?,  up  to  the  litnc  of  the  coming  of  small  industries 
and  tompttitive  capitalism. 

While  the  frontier  existed,  this  was  the  only  country 
in  till-  world  that  for  many  generations  jjermitted  its 
inhabitants  to  t  hoo.-,e  in  which  of  the  historic  stages  of 
social  evolution  they  would  live.  The  competition- 
crushed,  unemployed,  or  black-listed  worker  of  cap- 
italism moved  west  into  the  small,  competitive  stage 
with  its  greater  opportunities  for  self-employment  or 
for  "rising."  He  could  move  onward  geographically 
and  backward  historically  to  the  semicommunistic  stage 
of  the  first  permanent  settlers  who  would  help  him  .-.!•- 
his  log  cabin  and  clear  the  ground  for  his  first  crop  of  corn. 
If  he  felt  himself  hemmed  in  by  even  the  slight  restric- 
tit)ns  of  this  stage,  he  could  shoulder  his  rifle  and  revert  to 
the  wilderness  and  savagery. 

The  frontier  has  been  the  great  amalgamating  force 
in  .\merican  life.  It  took  the  European  and  in  a  single 
lifetime  sent  him  through  the  racial  evolution  of  a  hun- 
dred generations.  When  he  had  finished,  the  few  pecul- 
iar customs  he  had  brought  from  a  single  country  were 
gone,  and  he  was  that  peculiarly  twentieth  century 
product,  —  the  typical  American.  Only  since  the  fron- 
tier has  disappeared  have  great  colonies  grown  up  in 
which  all  the  national  i>eculiarities  of  those  who  compose 
them  are  accentuated  by  the  internal  resistance  to  the 
seemingly  hostile  territory  about  them. 

Those  individuals  who  are  most  commonly  instanced 
as  distinctively  American  are  largely  born  of  the  fron- 
tier and  have  passed  through  its  successive  stages. 

The  frontier  has  LMven  rise  to  the  onlv  race  of  hereditarv 
rebels  in  history.     One  strange  feature  of  this  westward 


^'W': 


thf:  wcstwari)  march  of  a  pkople 


141 


march  has  been  the  remarkable  tendency  of  the  same 
families  to  remain  continuously  in  the  same  social  stajje, 
movinj^  westward  as  the  succeeding  stage  encroached 
upon  the  one  they  had  chosen.  The  fathers  of  those  who 
settled  on  the  Great  IMains  and  in  the  valleys  of  the 
Cordilleras  lived  in  the  states  of  the  Mississippi  \'alley, 
and  their  grandparents  conquered  the  forests  in  Ohio, 
Kentucky,  and  Tennessee,  while  the  preceding  genera- 
tion had  its  home  in  western  New  York,  Pennsylvania, 
or  Virginia. 

This  pioneer  race  had  large  families,  a  high  death- 
rate,  but  a  far  higher  birthright.  It  has  been  |)ointed 
out  that  this  ajjplied  the  principle  of  natural  selecticm  in 
a  most  pitiless  and  effective  manner.'  It  produced  a  race 
physically  large  and  strong,  mentally  alert,  and  socially 
rebellious.  It  is  a  race  willing  to  try  social  e.xperiments. 
The  man  who  within  his  own  lifetime  has  seen  the  whole 
process  of  social  evolution  going  on  under  his  eyes  is 
not  a  believer  in  the  unchangeableness  of  social  institu- 
tions. 

These  social  stages  have  not  existed  side  by  side  with- 
out friction.  Each  has  desired  to  use  the  government 
to  further  its  interests.  In  this  conflict  of  interest  is 
found  an  explanation  of  many  political  struggles.  It 
was  such  a  clash  of  interests  that  made  itself  felt  in  the 
fight  over  the  constitution.  It  was  a  factor  in  the  elec- 
tion of  Jefferson.  It  appears  again  and  again  throughout 
American  history. 

In  many  respects  the  description  of  the  frontier  and 
its  progress  which  has  been  given  here  applies  only  to 
the  non-slaveholdine  states,     Whil^  slavery   existed   it 
•  Doyle,  "English  Colonies  in  America,"  Vol.  II,  p.  56. 


i 


142  SOCIAL   FORCES   IN  AMERICAN  inSTORY 

changed  the  method  of  westward  advance  in  the  South 
fundamentally.  The  struggle  of  these  two  methods  of 
westward  movement  culminated  in  the  Civil  War,  and 
it  was  the  battle  for  the  frontier  that  brought  the  slavery 
question  to  a  climax. 

These  various  general  features  of  the  frontier  movement 
are  brought  together  in  this  chapter,  not  in  order  to  treat 
them  in  full,  but  in  order  to  emphasize  this  highly  sig- 
nificant phase  of  American  history  and  make  more  com- 
prehensible a  whole  series  of  questions  which  must  ap- 
pear in  the  consideration  of  that  history.* 

'  F.J.  Turner,  "The  SiKnificanreof  the  Frontier  in  .\merit  an  History," 
is  by  far  the  best  discussion  of  this  i)hase  of  .\merican  history.  See  also 
Semple.  ".\mcriran  History  and  its  Geogra[)hii  Conditions,"  Chap.  IV; 
and  (iannet,  "The  Building  of  a  Nation,"  p.  39  el  scq. 


m^^^' 


W^^rWW^^^^^^k 


m 


CHAPTER  XIII 

THE  BIRTH  OF  THE  FACTORY  SYSTEM 

So  far  as  battles,  campaigns,  glorious  victories,  great 
diplomacy,  and  other  similar  paraphernalia  with  which 
some  historians  are  mainly  concerned,  the  War  of  1812 
was  insignificant.  While  jingos  boast  of  "how  we  licked 
the  Britishers,"  and  it  occui)ies  much  space  in  our  school 
histories,  yet  in  a  wider  and  more  accurate  vision  this 
war  is  seen  to  be  but  a  small  incident  in  the  g^cat  world 
war  in  which  Napoleon  was  the  central  figure.  Among 
the  many  nicknames  that  have  been  ;  '^lied  to  this  con- 
flict is  "The  War  of  Paradoxes."  It  was  waged  in  de- 
fense of  maritime  interests,  but  the  merchant  states 
threatened  to  secede  to  stop  it.  The  alleged  cause  of  the 
war  (the  English  "Orders  in  Council")  was  repealed 
before  war  was  declared.  The  most  important  battle  of 
the  war  (New  Orleans)  was  fought  after  the  treaty  of 
peace  had  been  signed,  and  the  original  subject  of  dis- 
pute (impressment  of  seamen")  was  never  mentioned  in 
the  treaty  of  peace.  Finally,  the  New  England  states 
that  were  so  eager  for  peace  were  ruined  by  its  coming, 
and  the  South  that  desired  war  found  its  prosperity  in 
peace. 

Although  many  generations  of  children  have  been 
taught  that  this  war  was  a  series  of  "glorious  victories," 
respect  for  truth  compels  the  statement  that  the  United 
States  was  whipped  in  nearly  every  campaign,  that  the 

U3 


^^:::.. 


144 


SOCIAL   FORCES  IN  AMERICAN  HISTORY 


capitol  was  burned,  the  coast  closely  blockaded  through- 
out the  war,  and  in  spite  of  all  the  stories  of  how  "we 
humbled  the  mistress  of  the  seas,"  the  American  navy 
was  practically  wiped  out  of  existence. 

The  story  of  the  origin  of  the  war  explains  some  of  these 
contradictions.  England  was  battling  with  Xa{)oleon 
for  the  mastery  of  Europe  and  of  the  world.  She  was 
victorious  on  the  seas,  and  was  depending  upon  that  com- 
mercial sui)remacy  for  resources  with  which  to  light.  In 
this  titanic  conflict  both  sides  were  determined  that  there 
should  be  no  neutrals.  They  could  not  well  make  any 
other  decision.  The  war  was  so  much  for  commercial 
sui)remacy  that  to  admit  the  existence  of  a  neutral  was 
to  give  that  neutral  control  of  the  object  for  which  the 
struggle  was  waged. 

Napoleon  had  declared  a  blockade  of  England,  and 
England  had  blockaded  nearly  all  of  Europe  to  ships 
that  had  not  first  cleared  from  a  British  port.  Napoleon 
in  turn  had  declared  that  all  ships  that  did  so  clear  were 
contraband  of  war.  The  result  of  these  "Orders  in 
Council"  and  "Berlin  and  Milan  Decrees"  was  that  Eng- 
lish and  French  ships  preyed  upon  the  commerce  of  the 
United  States.  In  spite  of  this  fact,  American  commerce 
grew  in  a  most  startling  manner,  until  a  few  New  Eng- 
land states  were  carrying  almost  one  third  of  the  com- 
merce of  the  world. 

In  her  effort  to  secure  sailors  to  man  the  gigantic  navy 
required  by  the  Napoleonic  wars,  England  was  in  the 
habit  of  stopping  merchant  vessels  of  the  United  States 
and  impressing  such  members  of  their  crews  as  she  desired, 
with  the  excuse  that  they  were  British  deserters.  To  be 
sure  a  large  j^ercentage  of  the  men  so  seized  were  deserters 


^S^^SS^ 


THE    BIRTH   OF   THE  FACTURV   SYSTEM 


145 


from  the  British  navy.  The  great  profits  of  American 
commerce  enabled  the  shipowners  to  pay  such  wages 
that  every  British  warship  anchoring  in  American  waters 
lost  a  good  portion  of  its  crew. 

The  plantation  interests  represented  by  Jefferson  had 
little  understanding  or  sympathy  with  the  \ew  England 
merchants.  Jefferson  was  inclined  to  temporize  and 
cxiierimcnt.  At  first  the  New  England  merchants  were 
belligerent  in  their  talk  and  petitions  to  Congress,  but 
they  soon  discovered  that  more  money  could  be  made 
running  blockades  than  in  a  domestic  war,  and  became 
the  strongest  opponents  of  all  retaliatory  measures. 

The  cotton  planters,  on  the  other  hand,  were  an.xious 
for  war,  or  at  least  for  some  sort  of  reprisals  directed 
against  England.'  They  were  selling  their  cotton  to 
that  country.  The  price  was  low,  and  the  old  antag- 
onism between  buyer  and  seller  was  being  felt.  This  an- 
tagonism, however,  was  not  suiTiciently  sharp  to  lead  to 
war.  It  led  rather  to  a  series  of  peculiar  legislative  acts 
based  upon  the  idea  that  a  country  could  be  punished  by 
withholding  commerce.  The  result  of  this  attitude  was 
the  passage  of  the  "Embarg*.  "  and  the  "Noninter- 
course"  acts. 

These  measures  were  based  upon  the  idea  that  the 
trade  of  a  country  is  a  sort  of  isolated  entity  that  can  be 
withheld  and  granted  or  directed  wherever  and  when- 
ever such  action  is  desired.  By  withholding  the  Ameri- 
can trade  Jefferson  thought  to  pun'sh  England.  The 
"Embargo"  forbade  American  ships  to  leave  their  har- 
bors save  for  coast  trade.      Since  a  large  proportion  of 

'  U,  B.  Phillips,  "Gcornia  and  State  Rights,"  in  .\nnual  Report 
of  .\mcrican  Historical  .X.ssocialion,  igot,  \ol.  11,  jip.  99-100. 

L 


'wm^-:^jW^WM^s-r':^-i^-  -^;-?m  Jii 


-  •"  t.  =,*t; 


146  SOCIAL   FORCKS   IN   A.MLRICAX    HISTORY 

American  histories  have  been  written  by  persons  with 
New  l':nglan(l  prejudices,  these  histories  nearly  all  de- 
clare the  "Embargo"  to  have  been  a  terrible  failure.  In 
truth  it  paralyzed  many  branches  of  British  industry, 
sent  the  price  of  llour  to  S19  a  barrel  in  England,  caused 
great  j)etitions  to  be  sent  to  Parliament  begging  for  relief, 
and,  finally,  actually  accomplished  the  object  for  which  it 
was  l.iid,  —  secured  the  repeal  of  the  "Orders  in  CounLJl," 
even  though  the  news  of  that  repeal  came  too  late  to 
avert  war.' 

During  the  war  the  New  England  merchants  carried 
their  opposition  to  the  farthest  point  possible  without 
taking  up  actual  hostilities  against  the  national  govern- 
ment. They  advocated  seces.-,ion.  refused  to  subscribe 
to  the  national  loan,  encouraged  their  niiliti-  to  rebel 
against  orders  of  the  national  government,  sent  large 
sums  of  specie  to  Canada  for  British  drafts,  supplied 
food  to  the  British  armies  and  ships,  and  in  general  did 
everything  that  would  bring  a  profit  and  injure  the 
national  government. - 

This  war  has  al>o  been  called  "The  Second  War  for 
Independence."  There  is  more  than  a  little  justice  in 
the  name.  But  that  independence  was  not  gained  at 
Lundy's  Lane,  or  Xcw  Orleanr,  by  Perry  on  Lake  Erie 
or  by  the  \ictory  of  the  Constitution  over  the  Gucrriere. 
That  indept  idence  came  through  developments  in  a 
wholly  different  field.  It  was  a  result  of  the  industrial 
transformation  wrought  by  the  war. 

'  M.M.Kior,  '•  History  of  the  FVoplo  of  the  United  .States,"  Vol.  IV', 
pp.  1-2. 

'Hat)(()(k.  "Rise  of  American  Valionality,"  pp.   156-158;    Dewey, 
"iiiianiiai  History  ol  the  Lniled  .States,"  p.  133. 


Tlli;    LiRTH    OF   Till,    l.\CTc*kV   -SVSII.M 


14; 


The  most  imi)ort;int  event  of  the  period  was  the  birth 
of  a  royal  heir,  the  last  of  the  I..n-  line  of  rulin-  (lasses 
that  have  dominated  society  .-,inee  the  appearance  of 
private  property.  This  last  prince  of  the  line  of  .lass 
rule  was  the  machine-owning  capitalist  cla>s.  The 
I'niled  States  census  of  1900  is  authority  for  the  state- 
ment that  "the  factory  system  obtained  its  first  footh.-ld 
in  the  United  States  during'  the  period  of  the  Kmbargo 
an.l  the  War  of  .  ,."  To  be  sure,  thi^  same  uuthoritv 
assures  us  that, 

"The  manufacture  of  cotton  and  wool  passed  rapidl\- 
from  the  household  to  the  mill,  but  the  methods  of  d,,'- 
mestic  and  neighborhood  industry  continued  to  pre- 
dominate, even  in  the>e  industries  down  to.  and  includ- 
ing, the  decade  between  .J20  and  1S30;  ami  it  was  not 
until  about  1S40  that  the  factory  method  of  manufacture 
extended  itself  widely  to  mi>cellaneous  industries,  and 
began  raj.idly  to  force  from  the  market  the  handmade 
lonmiodities  with  which  every  community  had  hitherto 
sui)plied  itself." 

In  spite  of  the  fact  that  the  factory  industrv  had  been 
struggling  for  a  foothold  since  the  beginning  'oi  the  cen- 
tury, and  that  mu(  h  boasting  had  been  made  of  the  extent 
to  which  manufacturing  was  carried  on.  the  opening  of 
the  war  saw  the  country  in  such  a  dei)endent  condition 
that  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  begged  that  the  Em- 
bargo be  raised  temporarily  in  order  that  the  government 
might  obtain  the  woolen  blankets  that  were  required  in 
the  Indian  trade,  since  these  could  not  be  produced  in 
the  United  States. 

Any  war  tends  artinn.ny  u^.  stimulate  manufactures. 
The   purchase   of   large   quantities   of   uniform   articles 


14^ 


^(KlAL    I'ORLhS    IN    AMLKICAX    IHSTOKV 


favors  ihc  factory  rather  than  the  household  producer. 
Governniint  specifications  frequently  provided  that  the 
goods  must  be  of  American  manufacture.  With  no 
foreign  competition,  a  limited  number  of  domestic  pro- 
ducers, and  production  inadequate  to  demand,  factories 
yielded  several  hundred  per  cent  profit. 

As  had  been  the  case  in  1-^urope,  the  mercantile  cap- 
italists had  accumulated  the  capital  for  the  establishment 
of  the  factory  system.  Wm^drow  Wilson  notes  that, 
"The  very  shipowners  of  the  trading  ports  had  in  many 
instances  sold  their  craft  and  put  their  capital  into  the 
manufacture  of  such  things  as  were  most  immediately 
needed  for  the  home  market."  ' 

Another  law  of  historical  evolution  is  illustrated  in  the 
way  that  the  rising  social  class  found  expression  in  the 
social  consciousness.  Every  effort  was  made  to  encour- 
age manufactures.  Societie>  were  formed,  premiums 
offered,  bounties  paid,  ta.x  e.xemjjtions  granted,  and  every 
possible  means  for  the  fostering  of  manufactures  was  put 
into  operation. 

The  most  strenuous  efforts  were  made  to  entice  for- 
eign arti.sans  to  America.  All  their  effects  were  exempt 
from  duty.  Pennsylvania  hastened  to  grant  them  es- 
pecial privileges  of  citizenship.  Many  legislatures  passed 
resolutions  pledging  their  members  to  wear  only  home- 
made goods.  To  encourage  the  woolen  industry,  bounties 
were  offered  for  the  importation  of  merino  sheep,  and 
Pennsyhania  taxed  dog.  to  raise  money  with  which  to 
import  rams  of  this  famous  breed. 


'  "Hisloryof  thi'  American  Pcupli 
"An  A'.toiint  of  the  I'p.i!!-!!  S.i:i!f- 
Alatlhew  Curcy,  "New  Olive  Brunch,"  Chap.  V. 


\ul  III,  I).   J4o;  T).  B.  \V.ir(len, 
\ -: 


r^-^m-'t^Mfi 


m^mfmgmmm 


•^-^'l-'''-"^f;-«^' 


THE   BIRTH   OF   THI-:   FACTORY   SVSTKM 


149 


Manufactures  could  not  fail  to  llourish  under  such 
conditions.  In  the  production  01  cotton  there  were  87 
mills  in  181 1  operating  80,000  spindles  and  producing 
2,880,000  pounds  of  yarn,  with  4000  employees.  By  1815 
there  were  half  a  million  spindles  running,  with  76,000 
employees,  working  up  27.000,000  pounds  of  raw  cotton. 
The  iron  industry  developed  to  the  point  where  it  lacked 
hut  3000  tons  of  supplying  the  whole  country.  It  is 
worthy  of  note  that  it  now  began  to  center  around  Pitts- 
burg. Earthenware,  glass,  cordage,  and  all  manner  of 
wooden  ware  manufactures  shot  up  into  prominence. 

The  number  of  patents  rapidly  increased.  The  first 
complete  mill  for  the  production  of  cotton  cloth  was  set 
up  by  Francis  C.  Lowell  at  Waltham,  Massachusetts, 
in  1S15.  Elkanah  Cobb,  of  \'ermont.  invented  a  ma- 
chine for  weaving  blankets  that  did  the  work  of  several 
men. 

Soon  the  manufacturing  capitalist  began  to  develop 
even  more  clearly  the  outlines  of  a  definite  class  con- 
sciousness. A'ihs'  Weekly  Rej^ister,  the  great  organ 
of  the  manufacturers  during  the  next  forty  years,  was 
started  in  Baltimore,  September,  181 1.  From  the  begin- 
ning it  was  an  active  defender  of  protective  tarifTs.  In 
iSigwe  hear  it  voicing  the  jealousy  of  the  manufacturers 
and  shipowners  for  the  favor  of  the  national  government. 

One  of  the  memorials  sent  by  the  manufacturers  to 
Congress  at  this  time  makes  a  suggestive  complaint  and 
e.xplanation  in  these  words  : '  — 

"The  fostering  care  bestowed  on  commerce  —  the 
various  statutes  enacted  in  its  favor  —  the  expense 
incurred    for    that   purpose  —  the   complete   protection 

*  Nili's'  Register,  July  17,  iSk;,  p.  351. 


'^.WF       "•"-'; 


I50 


MMJIAL   RJkCIiS   IS   AMERICAN    HISTORY 


it  has  expcricnct'd,  form  a  most  striking  contrast  with 
thf  situali(m  of  manufactures,  and  the  sacrilice  of  those 
interested  in  tlieni.  .  .  .  There  is  but  one  vvav  to 
account  for  the  care  bestowed  on  the  commercial' and 
the  neglect  of  the  manufacturing  interests.  The  former 
has  at  all  times  been  well  represented  in  Congress  and 
the  latter,  never." 

The  period  immediately  succeeding  the  war  came 
near  to  strangling  the  infant  manufacturing  industry 
in  the  cradle.  .\s  had  been  the  case  at  the  close  of  the 
Revolution,  European  ami  esi)ecially  British  manu- 
facturers i)oured  a  flood  of  goods  ui)on  the  American 
market.  They  could  the  more  easily  do  this  since  the 
Xapoleonic  wars  ended  with  the  battle  of  Waterloo  in 
1815.  But  the  whole  fabric  of  American  society  was 
changing,  and  in  that  change  the  factory  system  was  to 
fmd  new  strength  and  grow  until  it  became  the  dominant 
factor  in  that  society. 


~S^  ^W^/^^i^,  t.<^^f.4l^/'''?>4^E'''-"^'$i^^f'^ 


W^^^^M^^: 


CHAPTER  XIV 


CHANGING  INTERESTS 


In  the  twenty  years  immediately  following  the  War 
of  1812  forces  were  evolving,  institutions  arising  and 
changing,  centers  of  social  gravity  shifting,  and  deep 
basic  movements  of  various  sorts  taking  place  that  have 
had  the  most  lasting  effects  upon  the  whole  structure 
of  American  life. 

It  was  essentially  a  time  of  realignment  of  interests, 
and  of  changes  in  social  attitude. 

America  had  hitherto  looked  eastward  across  the 
Atlantic.  Sometimes  it  looked  with  anger,  but  always 
with  interest,  and  its  problems  were  entangled  with 
those  of  the  older  continent.  Public  questions  turned 
on  points  located,  in  part  at  least,  beyond  the  national 
boundaries.  The  dominant  economic  activity,  aside 
from  agriculture,  had  been  commerce,  and  commerce 
is  always  concerned  with  external  affairs.  The  in- 
dustrial, social,  and  political  upheavals  that  had 
taken  place  in  Europe  during  the  early  years  of  the 
American  Republic  were  such  as  to  attract  attention. 
The  French  Revolution  and  the  Napoleonic  wars  were 
dramas  that  compelled  the  attention  of  the  world. 

After  the  War  of  181 2  the  American  social  mind 
became  introsDective.  Henceforth  it  w.'i.=.  not  Ut  he 
concerned  primarily  with  treaties,  commercial  bounties, 

151 


f- 

Kj."^ 

1 

1 5-'  SOCIAL   FORCKS    I\   A.MKRIC.W    HISTORY 

impressment,  embargoes,  and  matters  of  the  open  sea 
and  distant  lands,  hut  with  turnpikes  and  canals.  taritTs 
and  manufactures,  pul.h'c  lands,  currency,  hanks.  cri.ses, 
jMiverty,  state  sovereignty    and  chattel  slavery.' 

It  was  not  alone  that  commerce  was  fleclining  and 
manufactures  growing.  The  people  themselves  were 
leaving  the  seaboard  and  setting  their  faces  toward  the 
West.  The  dribbling  streams  of  immigrants  that  had 
been  pres.sing  through  the  clefts  in  the  Alleghenies  now 
became  a  mighty  Hood  that  [)()ured  over  and  around  these 
barriers  and  swept  down  upon  the  Mississijjpi  \'alley. 
Between  1815  and  1820  western  Pennsylvania,  with 
Kentucky,  Tennessee,  and  .southern  (Jhio  and  Indiana, 
were  filled  with  a  hustling  i)opulation. 

During  this  period  the  people  of  the  Ohio  Valley 
reached  the  small  farmer  stage.  Since  each  farm  was 
a  small  hou.schold  manufacturing  establishment,  and 
especially  as  the  beginnings  of  the  factory  system  were 
also  apparent,  this  locality  developed  a  protectionist 
sentiment.  Its  most  pressing  need,  however,  was  for 
better    transportation  facilities.     It    is    not    surprising, 

'  Boston  yankrr,  Xov.  4.  i8to  :  "The  lime  appears  to  I)c  fast  ap- 
proach.nK  when  an  im[x,rtant  diangc  must  take  place  in  the  situation 
of  the  people  of  this  country.  The  unexampled  success  of  American 
commerce  durinR  the  late  troubled  state  of  Kuropc  appears  to  have  fairly 
intoxicated  the  population  of  this  country.  Kvcry  newspaper  from 
N.  Orleans  to  Maine  was  loud  in  advocatiuR  the  commercial  policy 
but  the  tranquillity  of  Europe  has  wrouRht  such  a  change  in  the  commer- 
cial world  that  th3  Americans  begin  to  see  and  feel  that  it  is  not  on  com- 
merce alone  they  must  depend.  New  evidence  arises  every  day  to  prove 
that  vve  cannot  entirely  be  a  commercial  people.  The  prosperity  of 
the  U.S.  is  bottomed  upon  the  success  of  agriculture  and  manufactures 
which  begin  to  excite  interest  in  proportion  to  the  decline  of  commerce.'' 

..  ,  7 vx-,v'    ^^'^^^ij  u!   .->Ki;;i  .scrvi,c,     A:.a,:ln    Monthly, 

\ol.  LXXIX,  p.  23 ;   I'.  J.  Turner,  Atlantic  Monthly,  Jan.,  1903,  p.  84. 


^5^W5^ 


CII.\N(ilN(,    IM  !  !n:sTS 


OJ 


therefore,  that  Henry  ("lay.  "the  fatht  r  of  the  Arrerii.n 
protective  system"  and  the  jireat  ehampion  of  int.  rnal 
inij)rovements.  sliould  have  been  sent  to  Congress  from 
Kentucky  during  th'" .  j)erio(l. 

'I'lic  South  was  also  undergoin-,'  an  industrial  transfor- 
mation. Here  it  was  not  the  supplanting  of  one  form 
of  industry  by  another  so  much  as  the  rise  of  a  new  crop 
tliat  was  working  the  change.  The  invention  of  t'  e 
cotton  gin  had  made  the  cultivation  of  upland  tton 
profitable,  and  as  a  consequence  the  (ompetition  of 
Western  lands  was  ruining  the  agriculture  of  the  sea- 
board. The  '■  Virginia  dynasty,"  comix)Sc..  of  the  \Va>h 
ingtons.  Madisons.  JetTersons.  Randolp!.-.  and  others, 
whose  families  came  across  the  Atlantic  at  the  time  of 
the  Commonwealth  in  England,  were  being  impoverished, 
and  losing  their  industrial  iH)wer.  were  being  relegated 
to  the  rear  iH)litically. 

So  complete  was  the  industrial  decline  of  X'irginia  that 
one  observer  declared  that  the  larger  planiations  were 
nearly  all  plunging  their  owners  deeper  and  deeper  into 
debt.  In  1830  John  Randolph  prophesied  that  the 
time  was  coming  when  the  masters  would  run  away 
from  the  slaves  and  be  advertised  for  in  the  public 
papers."  It  was  during  this  period  that  Thomas  Jeffer- 
son became  so  impoverished  that  public  subscrii)tions 
were  raised  to  relieve  him  and  Congress  purchaswl  his 
library,  a  transaction  from  which  sprung  the  present 
magnificent  Congressional  Library.^ 

It  is  not  surprising  that  such  an  industri  d  condition 
should  have  given  rise  to  considerable  antislavery   ^cn- 

>  Frederick  J.  Turner,  "The  Rise  of  the  New  West,"  p.  50- 

'  Thomas  Watson,  "  Life  and  Times  of  Thomas  Jefferson,"  p.  508 


'•K^«^3sp^sr" 


^^sm 


mmf 


;  3i**<&i?i  ^Krt 


=t:.  j-i- ji-^'^^ 


154        sociAi.  roKcr:.s  i\  AMr.KicAN  iiisk-kv 

tinu-nt  in  \  irj^'inia.  This  sintinicnt  was  „f  .>h,.rt  dura- 
Unu  In  anc.tlur  Roncrati.m  the  upland  cotton  planters 
and  the  Lomxana  su^ar  raisers  were  den.an.iinK  slaves 
in  such  nu-nlnrs  that  their  production  in  \irginia  became 
a  i)ro)itahIe  industry. 

fn  \ew  KnKland.  although  the  old  fishing  and  mer- 
cantile rulers  were  passing  olT  the  stage,  many  of  the 
same  fanulies  succeeded  to  the  linc^  of  power  l,v  investing 
their  capital  in  the  rapi.lly  growing  manufactures 
_    Intil  tins  f,erio,|  the  merchants  and  the  commercial 
Jnterests.    ,n    alliance   with    the   Southern  ,,lanters,   ha.l 
controlled    the    national    government.      The    manufac- 
turers who  were  struggling  for  influence  in  that  govern- 
ment were  quick  to  point  out   the  extent  to  which  the 
nation  had  used  its  machinery  for  the  henel.t  of  com- 
merce.    Matthew  Carey,   the  great  .si)okesman  of  the 
manufacturing  interests,  places  upon  the  title  pages  of 
his    Lssays  (.n  Political  K conomy  "  a  table  comparing  the 
treatment     accorded     to     agriculture,    commerce,    and 
manufactures.     In  his  "Xew  Olive  Branch"  he  points 
out  that.  ' 

"The  second  act  pas.sed  by  the  first  Congress  contained 
clauses  which  secured  to  the  tonnage  of  our  merchants 
a  monopoly  of  the  whole  China  tra.le  -  and  gave  them 
paramount  advantages  in  all  other  foreign  trade 

"The  same  act  gave  our  merchants  an  additional  deci- 
sive advantage  by  allowing  a  discount  of  ten  per  cent 
on  the  duties  upon  goods  imported  in  American  vessels 
_  Ihe  tonnage  dut>  upon  vessels  belonging  to  American 
citizens  was  fixed  at  six  cents  a  ton;  on  American-built 
vessels,  <nvned  wholly  or  in  part  by  foreigners,   thirty 

Cent^-     rin.l   ,..1    ..11   ...I r    ^    •  ...  •' 

'  '-"  ^■'■'■^"i  i^'Cign  vesseis,  iitiy  cents. 


M, 


CHAN{iIN(.    INTIKI.STS 


155 


"In  order  to  i-xcludo  foreign  vcsmIs  from  the  coasting 
trade  they  were  subjected  to  a  tonnage  <hity  of  lifty 
cents  per  ton  for  every  voyage  ;  whereas  our  vessels  i)aid 
but  six  cents,  and  only  once  a  year." 

The  methods  by  which  these  favors  for  the  mercantile 
interest  were  secured  arc  very  clearly  understood  by 
Carey,  and  he  instances  them  as  an  example  that  must 
be  followed  by  the  manufacturers  if  they  are  to  have  the 
use  of  the  government  to  defend  their  interests. 

"It  is  not  dilticult  to  account  for  this  parental  care," 
he  tells  us.  "The  mercantile  interest  was  ably  repre- 
sented in  the  first  Congress.  It  made  a  judicious  selec- 
tion of  candidates,  and  carried  the  elections  pretty  gen- 
erally in  the  seaport  towns.  .  .  .  The  representation 
in  Congress  was  divided  almost  wholly  between  farmers, 
planters,  and  merchants.  The  manufacturing  interest 
was,  I  believe,  unrepresented  ;  or,  if  it  had  a  few  repre- 
sentatives, they  were  not  distinguished  men,  and  had 
little  or  no  influence.  It  shared  the  melancholy  fate  of 
all  unrepresented  bodies  in  all  ages  and  all  nations." 

As  fond  parents  are  prone  to  predict  brilliant  futures 
for  each  new-born  infant,  so  at  the  time  of  the  birth  of 
the  factory  system  the  most  extravagant  blessings  were 
expected  from  its  development.  Even  the  columns  of 
the  Annals  of  Congress  break  into  peans  of  promise, 
singing  of  the  blessings  to  be  brought  with  the  new 
machinery.  In  a  report  submitted  by  Tench  Coxe  in 
1814  he  congratulates  the  workers  of  America  on  "the 
variety  of  ingenious  mechanisms,  processes,  and  devices, 
which,  while  they  save  labor,  manifestly  exempt  them 
from  the  deleterious  modes  of  the  old  manufacturing 
system."    He   proceeds    in    a  strain  that  has   a   queer 


Ji 


idi^^S^         iUr.'k^,- 


^*s>^Z  ^k^kS^^S^;  -^»^^^i'i*^  i^ 


156 


S(KI.\I,    lOKCKS    IN   AMKKICAX   HISTORV 


sound   in  the   ears  ot    those  who  have  seen  the  elTects 
actually  j)r()duce(l   by  these  machines :     - 

"Women,  relieved  in  a  considerable  dejjree  from  their 
former  cmi)loyments  as  carders,  weavers,  and  fullers  Ijy 
hand,  occasionally  turn  to  the  occupation  of  the  weaver, 
with  improved  machinery  and  instruments,  which  abridge 
and  soften  the  labor,  while  the  male  weavers  emjjloy 
themselves  in  sui)erintendcnce,  instruction,  sui)erior 
or  other  operations,  and  promote  their  health  by  occa- 
sional attention  to  gardening  agriculture,  and  the  clear- 
ing and  improvement  of  their  farms.  .  .  .  These  v;on- 
derful  machines,  working  as  if  they  were  animated  beings, 
endowed  with  all  the  talents  of  their  inventors,  laboring 
with  organs  that  never  tire,  and  subject  to  no  expense 
of  food,  or  bed.  or  raiment,  or  dwelling,  may  be  justly 
considered  as  an  equivalent  to  an  immense  body  of 
manufacturing  recruits  enlisted  in  the  service  of  tr.e 
country."  ' 

Unfortunately  for  this  idyllic  picture  the  machines 
became  instruments  of  private  profit  in  the  hands  of  a 
class  of  non-workers  who  soon  became  a  power  in  the 
na  i(  nal  governm<'nt,  while  those  who  operated  these 
Instruments  were  doomed  to  exploitation,  and.  to  para- 
phrase the  words  of  Matthew  Carey,  quoted  above, 
"shared  the  melancholy  fate  of  all  urrepresented  bodies 
in  all  iges  and  all  nations." 

While  the  old  ruling  class  in  the  South  and  in  New 
England  was  being  disrupted  by  the  disintegration  of 
its  economic  base,  the  new  economic  class  of  manufac- 
turers was  gaining  political  power  and  influence.  By 
iSi6  it  was  able  to  carry  thi'mgh  Congress  a  tariflf  law 
'  Annals,  1814,  .Xppcmii.v,  i)p.  26oi-.'0o2. 


CHAN(iIN'(J    INTERESTS 


157 


with  fairly  strong  protective  feat;'  This  measure 

was  carried  by  the  voles  of  the  .\  le  and  Western 
states,  with  some  help  from  the  South  I'he  commercial 
int  rests  of  New  England,  led  by  Daniel  Webster,  a 
newcomer  in  Congress,  offered  the  strongest  op{)osition. 
John  C.  Calhoun  of  vSouth  Carolina  was  a  supporter 
of  the  tarifT.  Changing  economic  interests  later  reversed 
the  positions  of  these  two  antagonists. 

The  South  still  hoped  that  it  might  become  the  seat 
of  manufactures,  or  at  least  that  it  would  hnd  in  New 
England  cotton  factories  a  better  market  than  abroad; 
while  the  fear  of  foreign  competition  in  the  raiding  of 
cotton  led  Southern  planters  to  desire  a  market  in  which 
they  might  hope  to  have  at  least  a  great  advantage.' 

Louisiana  was  beginning  to  produce  sugar,  and  the 
interests  of  the  producers  of  this  crop  led  her  represen- 
tatives in  Congress  to  join  with  the  protectionists. 

The  decline  of  Xew  England  commercial  and  Southern 
tobacco  interests  was  transferring  the  center  of  ix)\ver 
to  the  Middle  and  Western  states.  Pennsylvania  was 
now  becoming  the  "Keystone  state"  in  more  than  loca- 
tion. Although  it  had  not  yet  obtained  the  domination 
in  manufacturing  that  it  was  later  to  possess,  it  was 
advancing  toward  that  position.  Its  most  strikingly 
strategic  position  at  this  time  was  due  to  its  possession 
of  the  principal  gateway  to  the  West.  Hostile  Indians 
still  occupied  northern  Ohio  and  Indiana,  and  the  great 
highway  of  the  Hudson,  Mohawk,  and  Genesee  rivers 
was  not  being  used. 


ni 


'  Kiiward  Stanwood,  ".Vmcrican  Tariff  Controversies  'n  the  \ine- 
tecntti  Century,"  p.  joi>  ;  C.  K.  Haluoi  k,  "Thi-  Rise  of  .American  Nation- 
aiity,"  p.  160;   .Vi7«'  Rrgistrr,  Vol.  XXV'I,  p.  iij. 


1S8  SOCIAL  FORCKS   IN   AMKRICAN   HISTORY 

The  Ohio  River  was  the  main  artery  of  trade  and 
travel.     Until  after  1830  there  was  to  be  little  settle- 
ment west  of   the  Alle^henies  that  was  not  dependent 
upon  this  river.     A  map  of  population  prior  to  that  time 
shows  few  important  settlements  in  that  region  border- 
ing on  the  Great  Lakes  that  is  now  almost  dominant  in 
nutioaal   life.     The  principal   cities  of   the   West   were 
Cincinnati.   Marietta,  Louisville,  and  St.  Louis.     This 
trans-Allegheny  empire  had  grown  to  great  importance 
in  American  life.     Its  trade  was  determining  the  growth 
of  seaboard  states  and  cities  and  the  direction  of  future 
national   development.      Three   cities    on    the  Atlantic 
coast  were   contending  for  the  control  of  the  Western 
trade.     These  were  Baltimore.   Philadeli)hia.  and  New 
York.     The  weapons  with  which  cities  light  for  trade 
arc   usually   improved   systems   of   transportation.     At 
this  time  inland  transportation  was  by  canals  and  turn- 
pikes.    There  was  a  perfect  craze  for  the  construction 
of    these   forms   of    trade   highways.'     New   York   was 
planning  the  Erie  Canal.     Baltimore  had  succeeded  in 
inducing  Congress  to  undertake  the  Cumberland  Road,  a 
great  national  highway  to  pass  through  Cumberland  Gap, 
near  Wheeling.  West  Virginia,  and  on  into  and  across 
Ohio,  Indiana,  and  Illinois.'    Philadelphia  was  developing 
a  system  of  internal   canals  with  state  help,  to  secure 
the  advantage  possessed  by  the  fact  that  the  princii)al 
gate  for  Western  trade  was  already  located  at  Pittsburg. 

'  For  a  flcsrription  of  the  m.inncr  in  which  the  War  of  181.^  with  the 
FmLar^:,.  and  hlocka.lc.  had  .om,,dU-(l  ihe  development  of  inland  trans- 
|>ortatu:n,  and  especially  of  trade  hy  wapons,  see  Me.Master,  "History 
of  the  People  of  the  United  Stales."  Vol,  I\\  pp.  218-2  >i. 

'I.  L.  Rinswalt."  development  of  TransFwrtation  Svstems  in  the 
Lnticd  Slates,"  p,  a. 


CHANGING   INTKRESTS 


159 


There  was  still  another  contestant  for  the  trade  of 
this  Western  territory.  New  Orleans,  with  all  the  ad- 
vantage of  a  never  ceasing  river  current  llowing  from 
the  source  of  the  trade  past  her  doors,  was  the  natural 
outlet  for  many  of  the  products  of  this  district.  In 
181 1,  by  the  launching  of  the  lirst  steamboat  on  Wfstern 
waters  at  Pittsburg,  the  advantage  of  the  current  was 
largely  lost,  and  the  whole  aspect  of  Western  travel 
b.gan  to  be  transformed.' 

One  of  the  important  sources  of  Western  wealth  during 
this  period  was  the  fur  trade.  The  American  Fur  Com- 
pany, controlled  by  John  Jacob  Astor,  was  chartered  in 
1808,  and  within  a  dozen  years  had  become  a  power 
throughout  the  upper  Mississippi  X'alleyand  even  on  the 
Pacific  coast.  The  explorations  of  Lewi>  and  Clark  and 
Pike  opened  up  rich  fur  territory,  which  was  exploited 
until  settlement  invaded  its  sources  a  generation  later. 

Owing  to  the  difTiculties  of  transportation,  there  was 
no  strong  national  feelirg.  It  was  not  alone  Xew  Eng- 
land that  threatened  to  secede.  The  Mississippi  Valley 
was  filled  with  intrij^ue  and  with  separatist  sentiment 
The  ties  that  bound  the  interests  of  this  locality  with 
the  Atlantic  coast  were  few  and  tenuous,  and  were  only 
tightened  when  the  national  government  used  its  power 
to  protect  Western  interests  through  internal  imj)rove- 
mcnts  and  a  protective  taritT.  and  later  when  the  rail- 
road, steamship,  and  canal  systems  laid  a  firm  basis  for 
national  unity. 

'  L.  J.  Bishop,  "  History  ot  American  Manufu(  turcs,"  \'iil.  11,  p.  '73, 
Timothy  Flint,  ' Condcnst'd  Geography  and  History  of  th.-  Wtstcrn 
States,"  Vol.  H,  pp.  2j8-22g. 


CHAPTER  XV 


TIIE   FIRST   CRISIS  —  1819 

The  in(Iustri;il  boom  ca'atcd  l)y  the  Embargo,  the 
war.  wi'^tcrn  land  spot,  illation,  and  the  canal  and  turn- 
pike enthusiasm,  ami  fostered  by  the  tariff  of  1S16  gave 
the  infant  capitalism  severe  internal  pains,  climaxing 
in  the  first  -  ri>is  in  1S19. 

There  were  as  many  explanations  of  the  cause  of  this 
crisis  as  of  any  of  the  subsequent  ones.  Senator  Thomas 
H.  Henton  was  positive  that  it  was  caused  by  the  new 
United  States  Hank,  that  had  been  chartered  in  1816.' 
Many  other-  were  sure  it  was  caused  by  the  taritl  enacted 
in  thi'  same  \  ear.  It  was  really  Ijut  the  American  phase 
of  an  almost  universal  collapse  of  industry  and  finance 
following  the  readjustments  attendant  upon  the  do.se 
of  the  Xapoleonic  wars.  Unfavorable  weather  in 
Europe  had  almost  ruined  the  crops  of  1816  181 7  in 
England.  Erance.  an<l  Italy,  adding  a  catastrophe  of 
nature  to  an  industrial  collapse.-' 

Within  the  United  States  the  period  immediately 
preceding  the  crisis  had  been  one  of  feverish  specula- 
tiun.-'*     Although  there    was    still     a    vast    quantity   of 

'  Thom.is  H.  Hi'iiton,  "Thirty  Viurs  in  tlu'  fniti.l  States  Senate," 
Intn.,!u>tin„.  pp.  5  (, ;  William  II.  V.auw.  \  Slx.rt  Hi.iory  of  I'apir 
Motley  aihl  liaiikiiii;  in  the  Inited  States."  pp.   ^^^5. 

■11  l>e  (iihi.ins.  "Kiononiii  and  Industrial  Progress  Century,"  in 
NiiUieeiuh  Century  .Series,  Vol.  X\',  pp.   loS-ioy. 

'  .\ilis'  Kr^isUr,  June  12,  iSiij,  p.  .'57. 


THK    FIRST   CRISIS  — iSiQ 


i6i 


"no-rent"  land.'  there  had  been  a  wild  >truggle  to  secure 
possesaiun  of  western  lands,  with  all  the  attrnilant  phe- 
nomena of  exces>ively  high  prices,  frauduleni  purchases 
and  manipulation  that  became  so  familiar  in  later  years. ^ 

The  new  manufactures  alxi  offered  ,t  favorable  grouml 
for  specul.ili(jn.  Joint  stock  companies,  as  corporations 
were  still  called,  had  been  organized  in  great  numbers, 
and  their  .-lock,  tloated  ui)on  the  tirst  baltaL  m  ol  that 
immense  army  of  "innoieiit  ])urchasers"  wiio  ha\e  bien 
absorbing  similar  issue.-.  e\er  .>in(.e.  'I'hi  >e  >.ime  trusting 
individuals  were  given  an  oi)portunry  to  abM)rb  a  large 
(juantity  of  stock  in  canal  and  turni)ike  comp,  nies, 
many  of  whicli  went  bankrup'  during  the  enduing  crisis. 

The  whole  situation  was  greatly  aggraxaled  by  a 
state  of  llnancial  chaos.  The  charier  of  the  lir>t  Hank 
of  the  United  States,  the  one  chami)ioned  by  Hamilton, 
had  expired  in  i8i  i.  At  once  a  multitude  of  private  and 
state  banks  sprung  up.  Frequently  the  principal  asset 
of  these  banks  consisted  of  a  set  of  plates  from  which 
to    print    paper    money.     This   money    was    loaned    to 


'  Warden,  "Statistical,  Political,  and  Historical  .\tcount  of  the 
United  States"  (iSiq),  Introdui  iion,  [>.  .xliv  :  "Rent  e.\i-.ts  in  a  \(ry 
limite<i  (lf;.;ree  in  the  t'nited  States.  .  .  .  I',x(ept  in  le  imnie<li.iie 
neit;hI)orhcKKl  of  ^reat  towns,  there  is  very  little  land  let  at  ir.ise  in  the 
United  States,  the  price  hein^  so  low  that  an>-  |)erson  who  has  tile  ia|)ital 
ne<('ssary  to  enter  u|)on  the  luisinessof  f.irniin^'  finds  the  pun  hase  money 
of  the  land  a  \er>'  small  addition  to  his  outlaw" 

'C.  F.  F.meriik,  "  The  Credit  System  and  the  I'uhlii  I)oinain,"  p.  6 
it  srq,  "The  >e.ir  iSi  (  wiine>sed  the  lietriniiini;  of  a  ^reat  iiu  rease  in 
tile  --ales  of  piiMii  lands.  In  that  vear  S'i4,vVi  aire.-,  were  >iilil.  or 
:!4;,17o  more  tli.in  in  an\-  year  sinie  171/1  iMirim;  the  --'h  i  ceding;  lUe 
>ears  the  s;ile^  assumed  vast  [iro|Hirtions.  in  iShj  reai  liin^;  ^..)7,.fi4S 
acres.  These  I'mures  were  not  surp.isscd  until  1H55."  F'int,  "deoj;- 
raph\-  and  Histor\  of  Western  States,"  pp.  ^48-350. 


l62 


SOCIAL    lOkCKS   IN   AMMklC.W    HISTORY 


pros[K'(ti\c  purchascTS  of  land,  the  hank  being  secured 
hy  a  ni()rt;^M^'e  on  the  land. 

(■ai)italisni,  scarcely  in  existence,  could  hardly  be 
exi)ected  U)  evolve  any  effective  system  of  hanking.  It 
fell  hack  upon  individual  initiative,  and  turned  over  the 
function  of  printing  money  to  whatever  hand  of  clever 
men  might  get  together  and  se(  ure  the  easily  obtained 
sanction  of  some  state  government.  The  Constitution 
forbids  any  >tate  to  "emit  hills  of  credit,"  but  by  some 
strange  t\vi-<ling  of  thi.^  phrase  it  was  held  that  the  >tates 
were  free  to  confer  this  right  upon  individuals.  It  would 
be  impos>ihle  to  exaggerate  the  carnival  of  swindling 
that  followed.  Xearly  e\ery  legislature  was  besieged 
with  applicants  for  bank  charters,  and  those  best  able 
to  inlluence  such  legislation  were  granted  practically- 
unlimited  jiower  to  print  and  circulate  money. 

Any  sudden  shock  would  tumble  such  a  house  of  cards 
about  the  heads  of  its  builders.  'F'he  shock  came  when 
the  second  Bank  of  the  United  States  sought  to  force 
the  restoration  of  specie  payments  that  had  been  sus- 
I)ended  during  the  war.  This  second  bank,  unlike  the 
first  one,  was  owned  largely  outside  of  New  England.' 
For  the  moment  the  Middle  states,  with  their  growing 
manufactures,  and  the  Southern  states,  with  a  profitable 
cotton  crop,  were  more  prosfjerous,  more  directly  inter- 
ested in  and  favored  by  the  national  government,  and 
therefore,  more  patriotic  than  the  decaying  commercial 
states  of  Xew  England. 

Once  more  a  note  should  be  made  of  the  attitude  of 
three  men.     John  C.  Calhoun  of  South  Carolina  opened 

'  .MiMa^tcr,  "Hisi.in  of  tlic  IVopli- of  the  United  States,"  Vol.  IV, 
PI>-  SK>  J 1 4- 


THK    FIRST   CRISIS  — 1819 


»^i 


the  debate  in  Congress  in  support  of  the  bank.  In  this 
he  was  strongly  assisted  by  Henry  Clay  of  Kentucky, 
then  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives.  The 
great  oi)i)onent  of  the  bill  was  Daniel  Webster  of  Massa- 
chusetts.' Each  of  these  men  rellected  a  sectional 
economic  interest  in  this  position.  As  th()>e  interests 
changed,  the  beliefs  and  political  principles  of  these 
men  veered  to  suit  the  changing  wind. 

The  earliest  beginnings  of  this  bank,  that  was  to  be 
such  an  imi)()rtant  factor  in  the  linancial.  industrial, 
md  political  life  of  this  country,  were  tainted  with  fraud. 
The  provisions  for  a  paid-in  capital,  which  had  been  a 
part  of  the  law  creating  it,  were  evaded.  The  first 
subscribers  were  allowed  to  b(jrrow  money  ui)on  their 
stock  with  which  to  purchase  more  stock,  and  so  on  until 
a  most  unsteady  pyramid  was  built  with  no  genuine 
assets  at  bottom.-  The  operations  of  the  bank  were 
then  manii)ulated  to  the  benefit  of  the  board  of  directors 
and  stockholders.  Among  the  latter,  it  was  alleged  by 
Xiles,  who  was  by  no  means  an  enemy  of  the  bank, 
were  forty  members  of  Congress.^ 

The  scandals  were  so  great  that  a  Congressional  com- 
mittee was  appointed  to  investigate  the  bank,  and  when 
this  committee  reported,  January  16,  iSiq,  the  bank 
stock  fell  from  near  140  (at  which  point  it  had  been 
accepted  as  collateral  for  loans  up  to  almost  its  full 
market  value)  to  g.v^  Vet  the  rei)ort  was  largely  a 
whitewash,  and  its  main  elTect  wa>  to  frighten  the  presi- 
dent of  the  bank  into  lleeing  from  the  country.     Three 

'  MiMaster, /of  cit  ,  Vol.  IV,  pj).  ,5io-;ii 

^  \\>;.  H.  (iiMi^c.  •'iiisiory  ot  I'apiT  .Money  and  Mankind,"  p.  27. 

K\  lies'  Rf^iikr,  Fl-L.  -'7,  i8ig.  '  Gouge,  luc  cU.,  p.  30. 


d^ 


164 


SOCIAL    FORCi:^    I\    A.MIiRIC.W    HISTORY 


years  latt-r  a  report  was  forced  from  the  institution  that 
showed  that  it  was  absolutely  bankru|)t  at  the  time  of 
the  Congressional  investigation,  and  that  it  had  been 
guilty  of  nearly  all  the  acts  of  crooked  linancc  that  ^  ich 
a  still  unsoi)histicated  age  knew.' 

Immediately  after  the  Congressional  investigation 
and  the  Hight  of  the  president,  a  new  atlministration 
realized  that  only  the  most  drastic  steps  would  save  Llie 
institution  from  actually  going  through  bankruptcy 
proceedings,  with  the  probable  criminal  prosecution  of 
its  olhcials.  There  was  an  immediate  restriction  of 
credits,  a  sudden  demand  for  collections,  and  an  insist- 
ence ui)on  sjK'tie  payments  from  other  banks. 

When  the  Hank  of  the  United  States  refused  to  accept 
the  notes  of  the  insolvent  slate  banks,  the  latter  i)romptly 
failed,  their  securities  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  national 
in^>titution.  and  the  tens  of  thousands  of  debtors  who  had 
borrowed  this  money  for  land  speculation  and  other 
purposes  had  their  property  taken  iwuy  by  foreclosure 
oi  mortgages. - 

At  once  a  great  "Populistic"  movement  swept  over 
Kentucky,  Illinois,  Tennessee.  Indiana,  and  Ohio.  The 
legislature  of  Kentucky  established  a  state  bank,  with 
little  more  than  wind  for  assets,  and  declared  war  upon 
the  Bank  of  the  Uniteil  States.  Maryland,  Tennessee, 
Georgia,  North  Carolina,  Kentucky,  and  Ohio,  all 
endeavored  to  tax  the  branches  of  the  Bank  of  the 
United  States.  But  John  Marshall  was  Chief  Justice 
of  the  Supreme  Court,  and  in  the  famous  case  of  Mc- 
Cullough  vs.  Maryland  the  right  of  the  state  to  tax  the 

'  Ooiinc,  lor.  lit.,    p    5  r 

•  !■'.  J.  Turner,  "Rise  ul  ilic  New  Weal,"  pp.  iJO-127. 


THK   FIRST   CRISIS   -iSiQ 


'65 


hiink  was  denied.  But  the  frontier  cared  little  for  Su- 
j)reme  Court  decisions,  and  Ohio  proceeded  to  flaunt  the 
decision  and  to  collect  the  tax  by  force  of  arms,  while 
Kentucky  withdrew  the  protection  of  state  laws  from 
the  branches  located  in  that  state." 

The  revolt  of  the  West  was  not  surprising.  The  bank 
had  obtained  possession  through  mortgages  of  vast 
tracts  of  land,  both  urban  and  rural.  The  suffering 
everywhere  was  intense. 

Thomas  H.  Benton  introduces  his  "Thirty  Years' 
View"  with  this  striking  description  of  the  situation  in 
1820: — 

"  The  years  iSiq  and  1820  were  a  f)eriod  of  gloom  and 
agony.  Xo  money,  either  gold  or  silver:  no  paper 
convertible  into  si)ecie :  no  measure  or  standard  of 
value  left  remaining.  The  local  banks  (all  but  those  of 
New  England),  after  a  brief  resumption  of  specie  pay- 
ments, again  sank  into  a  state  of  suspension.  The  Bank 
of  the  United  States,  created  as  a  remedy  for  all  these 
evils,  now  at  the  head  of  the  evil,  prostrate  and  helpless, 
with  no  power  left  but  that  of  suing  its  debtors,  and 
selling  their  property,  and  purchasing  it  for  itself  at  its 
own  nominal  price.  Xo  j)rice  for  i)r<)ix'rty  or  produce. 
Xo  sales  but  those  of  the  sherifT  or  marshal.  Xo  pur- 
chasers at  the  execution  sales  but  the  creditor  or  some 
hoarder  of  money.  Xo  emi)loyment  for  industry  — 
no  demand  for  labor  —  no  sale  for  the  i)roduce  of  the 
farm  -  no  sound  of  the  hammer  but  that  of  the  auc- 
tioneer knocking  down  property.     Slop  laws       property 

'  Frcdcriik  J.  Turner,  "The  Riso  of  the  New  West,"  pp.  1,56-140, 
300;  J.  |{.  .MtMastcr,  "History  ol'  tht-  I'TO|)le  of  the  I'nited  Slates," 
Vul.  I\  ,  pp.  484  510;   Horace  White,  "Money  and  Hanking,"  p.  285. 


mi 


f'd] 


1 66 


SOCIAL   lOKCI-S    IN    AMl.klC.W    HISTORY 


laws  -  replevin  laws  —  stay  laws  —  loan  ofTitc  laws  — 
tliL-  iiitcrvcnliun  of  the  I'gi.>lator  between  the  creditor 
and  debtor  :  this  was  the  business  of  legislation  in  three- 
fourths  of  the  states  of  tiie  Union  of  all  South  and 
West  of  New  l",nj,'land.  \o  medium  of  exchanj^e  but 
depreciated  paper:  no  change  e\en,  but  little  bits  of 
foul  paper,  marked  so  many  cents  and  signed  by  some 
tradesman,  barber,  or  inn-keeper:  exchanges  deranged 
to  the  extent  of  fifty  or  une  hundred  per  cent.  Dis- 
TRKSS  the  universal  cry  of  the  people:  Rklikf  the 
universal  demand  thundere<l  at  the  doors  of  all  legis- 
latures, State  or  Federal."  ' 

This  process  of  wholesale  exploitation  by  the  bank 
was  one  of  the  steps  by  which  the  capital  necessary  to 
the  establishment  of  the  factory  system  was  gathered 
from  the  multitude  of  small  producers  and  brought 
together  in  the  large  sums  needed  for  the  introduction 
of  this  new  industrial  -^tage. 

In  August.  iSig,  X lies'  Rciiistcr  said  "There  are 
20,000  i)ersons  daily  seeking  work  in  Philadelphia  —in 
-New  \'()rk  10.000  .ihle-bodied  men  ;ire  said  to  be  wander- 
ing the  slreils  looking  for  it,  and  if  we  add  to  them  the 
women  who  desire  -^omething  to  do,  the  amount  cannot 
be  less  than  jo, 000  -  in  Haltimore  there  may  be  about 
10.000  jHTsons  in  unsteady  employment,  or  actually 
sulTering  be(au>e  they  cannot  get  into  bu-iness." 

This  j)anic  seems  to  have  marked  the  beginning  of 
regular  relief  by  charitable  bodies.  There  had  been 
plenty  of  misery  before,  but  the  whole  population  had 
been   so  closely  knit   together   that  charitable  societies 

'  Thomas  H.  Menton,  "Thirty  Years  in  iho  United  Slates  Senate," 
p.  5. 


THF.   FIRST   CRISIS -181Q 


167 


were  seldom  needed.  In  1S15  Henry  Xiles,  the  editor 
and  publisher  of  .Vi7«"  Rif^tslrr,  intimated  that  there 
was  one  pauper  for  every  250  persons.  He  also  states 
that  no  pro\i--ion  was  made  for  any  save  for  thi>st>  who 
were  (h'sabled  i)hysically,  e.xeept  durin;?  a  short  time  in 
the  winter.'  During  the  winter  of  1819  iSjo  soup- 
houses  were  estahhshrd  in  several  of  tlie  larger  citiis. 
A  httle  later  a  committee  was  ai)pointed  tf)  investigate 
the  public  charities  of  Philadelphia,  and  its  refnirt  reveals 
a  mass  of  misery  among  the  workers  that  foretells  the 
city  slum  of  to-day. 

While  the  national  government  was  being  used  to 
collect  the  last  farthing  from  the  little  farmers  and  half 
starving  wageworkers,  the  same  forces  that  were  utiliz- 
ing that  government  for  debt-collecting  purposes  were 
developing  a  bankruptcy  cotle  that  should  free  the 
merchant,  banker,  manufacturer,  and  planter  from  such 
of  his  debts  as  he  was  unable  to  pay.  The  governors 
of  Louisiana  and  Rhode  Island  urged  -he  enactment  of 
bankruptcy  legislation  in  their  annual  messages  in  181 6. 
Several  states  already  had  enacted  such  laws,  although 
the  national  government  had  repealed  the  one  enacted 
in  1800,  after  an  existence  of  only  three  years.  These 
laws  were  quickly  taken  advantage  of,  and  Xile>  in  1819 
remarks  that  "Twenty  or  thirty  years  ago  if  a  man  failed 
for  Sioo.ooo,  people  talked  about  it  as  something  marvel- 
ous. But  now,"  he  adds,  "it  is  not  considered  decent 
for  a  man  to  break  for  less  than  Sioo.ooo,  and  if  a  i)er- 
son  would  be  thought  a  respectable  bankrupt,  he  ought  to 
owe  two  or  three  hundred  thousand  more." 

A  New  York  judge  before  whom  some  of  these  bank- 
»  Sites'  Rcgiiky,  IX,  p.  jj2. 


MICROCOPY    RESOLUTION    TEST    CHART 

ANSI  c-id  ISO  TEST  CHART  No    7 


I.I 


1= 
3  2 


[  2.2 
1.8 


'•25   i  u 


1.6 


^^=  ■■:';  288  -  59S  ■ 


74 


SOCIAL   FORCES   IN   AMERICAN    HISTORY 


chain  of  committees  early  took  up  the  work  of  terrorizing 
those  who  opposed  them.  The  story  of  the  methods 
used  to  iiccomplish  this  end  does  not  make  nice  reading. 
It  tells  of  the  whipping  of  unarmed  men  by  armed  mobs, 
of  the  wholesale  application  of  that  humorous  method 
of  torturing  which  is  peculiarly  American,  and  is  supposed 
to  have  originated  at  'his  time,  tarring  and  feathering, 
and  riding  on  a  rail.  It  describes  the  burning  of  houses, 
the  "confiscation"  of  proi)erty,  the  hanging  of  not  a  few, 
and  the  aijplication  of  nearly  all  the  methods  of  mob 
violence  that  ingenuity  could  devise. 

One  of  the  weapons  which  was  most  widely  used,  both 
locally  and  nationally,  privately  and  otlicially.  was  the 
boycott.  One  of  the  <lrst  acts  of  the  first  session  of  the 
Continental  Congress  was  to  declare  a  boycott  on  all 
English  goods.  This  was  two  years  before  the  Declara- 
ticm  of  Indei)endence,  while  the  colonies  were  still  making 
a  great  parade  of  their  loyalty.  Yet  this  resolution  pro- 
vided not  simply  for  what  has  come  to  be  known  as  a 
"primary"  boycott  against  English  goods.  It  went  on 
to  describe  most  elaborately  the  methods  to  be  used  to 
enforce  a  boycott  upon  any  merchants  who  should  handle 
British  goods,  or  who  should  trade  with  England  in  any 
way.'  The  Committees  of  Correspondence  then  saw  t^)  it 
that  this  boycott  was  enforced,  and  they  worked  to  such 

w.-is  the  public  servant,  simi)Iy  and  solely,  in  places  larpc  and  small,— 
fire-ward,  committee  to  see  that  chimneys  were  .sife,  t.i^-collector,  m'od- 
erat.^r  of  t.)wn  meetinK,  representative,  (on^iressman,  governor.  One 
may  almost  call  him  the  creature  of  the  town-meetinj:.  His  <ievelupment 
took  place  on  the  floor  of  Faneuil  Hall  and  Old  South,  from  the  time  when 
he  ^tood  there  as  a  master  fi-ure;  an,l  such  a  master  of  the  methods  by 
which  a  town-meeting  may  be  swayed  the  world  ha<  ne\  er  seen,"  etc. 


MtW!^'W:^^^M^'fm.^^miMM^  ^^^''-•^:r'n  'm^.  W: 


THE  RF, VOLUTION 


75 


good  effect  that  importations  from  England  fell  ofT  one 
lialf  almost  at  once. 

When  the  statement  is  made  that  only  a  minority  of 
the  population  were  revolutionists,  the  question  naturally 
arises  as  to  how  this  minority  was  able  to  win  out.  The 
answer  is  found  in  the  fact  noted  by  every  writer  who  has 
studied  this  period  that  the  revolutionists  were  much 
more  active,  efiicient,  cohesive,  and  belligerent,  more 
conscious  of  their  aims  and  more  determined  in  their 
pursuit  than  any  other  portion  of  society.'  This  is  an 
invariable  characteristic  of  a  rising  social  class.  The 
capitalist  class  was  then  the  coming  class.  It  was  the 
class  to  whom  the  future  belonged.  It  was  the  class 
whose  victory  was  essential  to  progress.  The  Tories, 
with  their  adherence  to  the  royal  governors  and  to  the 
old  system  of  social  castes  and  legal  privileges,  were 
harking  back  to  an  already  dead  society.  They  had 
neither  ideas  nor  ideals  to  inspire  them.  The  economic 
system  to  which  they  belonged  was  alreaily  crumbling 
into  the  dust  of  history. 

In  so  far  as  the  military  operations  on  American  soil 
are  concerned,  they  can  best  be  understood  if  we  recall 
the  geographical  features  of  the  .\tlantic  coast.  Through- 
out history  the  strategic  line  of  attack  and  defense  on 
that  coast,  from  either  a  commercial  or  a  military  point 
of  view,  has  been  the  valley  of  the  Hudson.  If  the  Brit- 
ish could  occupy  this  valley,  rebellious  Xew  England 
would  be  cut  off  from  the  other  colonies,  and  a  base  of 
supplies  and  operations  created  from  which  other  mili- 

'  The  rcvolutionifts  were  also  the  armed  and  trained  riilemcn  of 
society.  It  was  the  frontiersmen  who  raptured  Huruovne.  won  the  hattlc 
of  King's  Mountain, and  generally  furnished  the  fighters  at  critical  times. 


-'^m 


76 


SOCIAL   FORCrS   IN   AMKRICAX   HISTORY 


tary  movements  of  conquest  would  have  been  compara- 
tixc'Iy  easy.  Boston,  the  center  of  revolt,  and  Phila- 
delphia, the  largest  city,  could  have  been  occupied  almost 
at  will,  and  a  brief  raiding  ex{)edition  would  have  sufficed 
to  have  subdued  the  Southern  colonies. 

At  the  opening  of  hostilities  Boston  was  already  oc- 
cupied by  a  British  army  under  General  Gage.  He  per- 
mitted a  portion  of  his  force  to  be  drawn  away  to  Lexing- 
ton in  the  elTort  to  destroy  the  military  stores  that  the 
colonists  had  accumulated,  and  saw  a  large  portion  of  this 
detachment  wii)ed  out  by  a  guerrilla  attack.  Then 
came  the  occupation  of  Bunker  (or  Breed's)  Hill,  which 
commanded  Boston.  The  British  army  attacked  the 
American  intrenchments.  and  was  successful,  but  at  a 
terrible  cost.  However,  the  British  still  occupied  Boston, 
and  the  .\merican  army  was  little  more  than  a  disor- 
ganized mob,  totally  incapable  of  conducting  any  elTec- 
live  siege. 

At  this  moment  a  most  important  change  took  place 
in  the  command  of  the  British  troops.  General  Sir 
William  Howj  was  given  charge.  The  important  fact 
about  General  Howe  was  that  he  was  a  most  intensely 
partisan  Whig,  and  that  he  had  been  one  of  the  strongest 
defenders  of  the  colonies  in  the  British  Parliament.  He 
was  absolutely  opposed  to  any  use  of  force  against  them  ; 
believed  them  to  be  in  the  right  and  entitled  to  victory. 
In  other  words,  the  work  of  conquering  the  colonists  was 
turned  over  to  a  man  who  was  anxious  that  they  should 
not  be  conquered. 

This  was  the  situation  when  George  Washington  was 
made  commander  in  chief  of  the  .\merican  forces.  He 
at  once  pre[)atcd  Lo  cuuducl  as  much  of  a  siege  of  Boston 


..•^.'V 


THE   RKVOLITION 


77 


as  was  possible.  He  had  an  army  without  guns,  am- 
munition (Bunker  Hill  was  lost  because  the  American 
ammunition  was  exhausted),  cannon,  or  even  food  and 
clothing.  Some  small  cannon  that  had  been  captured  by- 
Ethan  Allen  at  Fort  Ticonderoga  were  hauled  by  the 
New  England  farmers  on  sleds,  and  at  last  preparations 
were  made  for  actual  hostilities. 

Howe's  conduct,  in  the  meantime,  had  been  most 
mysterious  if  we  consider  it  as  that  of  a  sincere  British 
general.  He  was  a  man  of  military  ability.  He  was 
located  in  a  city  that  had  once  been  rendered  untenable 
by  the  occupation  of  a  hill  that  commanded  it.  It  is  a 
first  principle  of  military  tactics  that  all  elevations  com- 
manding a  position  must  be  occupied  if  the  position  is  to 
be  defended.  Vet  Howe  lay  in  Boston  all  winter  without 
occupying  Dorchester  Heights,  which  commanded  the 
city,  and  was  apparently  very  much  surprised  when 
Washington  at  last  took  the  hint  and  threw  up  some 
intrenchmcnts  on  that  position.  Howe  then  discovered 
the  very  obvious  fact  that  his  position  in  Boston  was 
endangered.  He  ha',  plenty  of  ships  in  the  harbor;  and 
the  artillery  of  that  Jay  in  the  hands  of  such  artillery- 
men as  were  to  be  found  among  the  Continentals  was 
not  particularly  dangerous  to  a  retreating  army.  More- 
over, there  had  scarcely  been  a  time  during  the  previous 
winter  when  he  could  not  have  completely  routed  the 
American  forces,  as  these  were  practically  without  am- 
munition. 

Then,  at  a  time  when  the  Revolution  was  languishing 
for  lack  of  the  munitions  of  war,  when  Xew  York  was 
unguarded  at  the  mouth  of  the  Hudson,  Howe  sailed 
away  to  Halifax,  leaving  behind  him  over  two  hundred 


i 


78 


SOCIAL   FORCIiS    IN      MERICAN   IIIST(^RY 


cannon,  several  tons  of  powder,  and  a  great  ^tock  of 
other  military  stores.  It  is  hard  to  conceive  of  any 
greater  service  he  could  have  extended  to  the  revolution- 
ary cause,  unless  he  had  marched  his  troops  directly 
into  Washington's  camp  and  turned  them  over  to  the 
American  general,  and  there  were  some  serious  obstacles 
in  the  way  of  doing  this.  Is  it  any  wonder  that  this 
auspicious  moment  was  seized  to  issue  the  Declaration 
of  Independence  ? 

A  few  days  before  that  declaration,  however,  General 
Howe  came  back  to  Xcw  \'ork.  which  he  occupied  with- 
out resistance,  showing  that  his  trip  to  Halifax  was 
unnecessary.  He  was  accompanied  by  his  brother, 
Admiral  Howe,  who  was  equally  partisan  to  the  Ameri- 
can cause.  Here  General  Howe  sent  back  requests  for 
reenforcements,  which  were  promptly  sent  him,  until 
he  had  between  35,000  and  40,000  well  armed,  fed,  and 
disciplined  troops  with  which  to  fight  between  5000  and 
15,000  ragged,  ill-fed,  and  poorly  equijiped  soldiers  under 
Washington.  So  small  were  the  resources  of  the  Ameri- 
cans that  it  is  doubtful  if  their  military  supplies  would 
have  permitted  six  weeks  of  active  fighting  before  they 
would  have  been  completely  exhausted  and  scattered. 
But  Howe  conducted  no  active  campaign.  On  the 
contrary,  he  was  careful  never  to  follow  up  any  advan- 
tage which  he  gained.  He  would  defeat  the  army  under 
Washington,  but  always  gave  ample  time  for  recupera- 
tion. At  the  same  time  it  must  be  recognized  that 
Washington  showed  himself  a  brilliant  general,  fully 
capable  of  utilizing  all  the  opportunities  that  Howe  so 
kindly  gave  him. 

The  next  year,  1777,  brought  the  turning  point  of  the 


at*u 


THE  RFAOLUTION 


79 


war.  The  British  occupied  Xew  York  with  many  more 
men  under  Howe  than  were  really  needed  to  hold  the 
position.  If  now  the  Iladson  \'aliey  could  be  occupied 
throughout  its  length,  the  backbone  of  the  colonies  would 
be  broken.  Accordingly  Burgoyne  was  sent  down  from 
Canada,  by  way  of  Lake  Champlain,  to  occupy  that  valley. 
General  Howe  was  to  detacli  some  of  his  superfluous 
troops  and  send  them  up  the  Hudson  to  meet  Burgoyne. 
Howe  did  not  do  this.  He  did  not  even  conduct  an  ener- 
getic campaign  against  that  portion  of  the  American 
army  which  was  near  him.  On  the  contrary,  he  was  so 
mild  in  his  elTorts  that  the  Americans,  with  a  much 
smaller  force  than  Howe,  were  permitted  by  him  to  divide 
their  forces  and  to  send  a  portion  under  Gage  to  assist  in 
the  attack  upon  Burgoyne.  Under  these  circumstances 
the  latter  soon  found  himself  much  outnumbered,  in  a 
hostile  country,  without  supplies  and  no  prospect  of 
relief,  and  was  compelled  to  surrender. 

By  this  time  the  British  government  had  become 
thoroughly  aroused  to  the  attitude  of  Howe.  Criti- 
cisms of  him  became  so  sharp  that  he  resigned  and  went 
back  to  England,  where  he  was  the  subject  of  a  Parlia- 
mentary inquiry  that  developed  the  facts  as  set  forth. 
He  was  too  powerful  politically  to  be  punished,  but 
throughout  the  Revolution  the  favorite  toast  at  banquets 
of  American  ofTicers  was  "General  Howe  ";  but.  strange 
as  it  may  seem,  no  school  history  considers  these  facts 
worthy  of  mention. 

With  the  fall  of  Burgoyne  and  the  return  of  Howe  to 
England  the  war  took  on  a  different  aspect.  It  was  more 
rigorously  prosecuted  in  America,  so  much  so  that  at 
times  it  appeared  as  if  the  Revolution  would  fail  and 


8o 


III 


SOCIAL   FORCFS   I.\   A.MLRICAX   HISTORY 


become  only  a  rebellion.  Its  scope,  however,  had  wi- 
dened. The  old  commercial  rivals  of  England  had  joined 
hands  with  the  colonies.  France,  Spain,  and  Holland 
extended  aid  in  the  form  of  money,  muniticnis  of  war,  and 
even  troops  and  battleships.  Knglanri,  beset  upon  all 
sides,  was  unable  to  send  the  troops  that  were  needed, 
and  that  had  been  so  {)lentiful  when  Howe  was  nlavin" 
at  war.  Cornwallis  was  hemmed  in  at  Vorktown  by 
the  allied  French  and  (^)ntinental  troops,  was  compelled 
to  surrender,  and  independence  was  assured. 


'\'''': 


i-.i-.c 


ifliK-itv 


CHAPTER    VIII 


FORMATION   OF   TIIK    GOVERN'ME.VT 


The  surrender  of  Cornwallis  in  America  was  followed 
uy  a  Whig  victory  in  Parliament.  On  the  27th  of  Feb- 
ruary, 1782,  this  resolution  was  carried  in  the  House  of 
Commons :  — 

"  That  it  is  the  opinion  of  this  House  that  a  further 
prosecution  of  ofTensive  war  against  America  would, 
under  present  circumstances,  be  the  means  of  weakening 
the  efforts  of  this  country  against  her  European  enemies, 
and  tend  to  increase  the  mutual  enmity  so  fatal  to  the 
interests  both  of  Great  Britain  and  America." 

One  month  later  the  Tory  ministry  fell,  and  the  Eng- 
lish allies  of  the  American  army  came  into  power  in  the 
home  country.  In  some  ways  the  English  Whigs  were 
more  consistent  and  more  revolutionary  than  those  who 
had  fought  under  the  Continental  flag.  They  curbed 
the  power  of  the  king  and  the  House  of  Lords,  made  the 
House  of  Commons  supreme,  and  laid  the  foundations 
for  a  much  more  truly  democratic  government  than  this 
country  has  yet  enjoyed.  One  reason  for  this  is  to  be 
found  in  the  existence  in  England  of  a  powerful  landed 
interest  which  was  in  such  sharp  antagonism  to  the  rising 
industrial  capitalists  that  the  latter  felt  keenly  the  need 
of  continuous  curbing  of  their  opponents. 

No  such  condition  existed  in  America.  Here  the 
antagonism  of  classes  was  rather  between  the  industrial 
c  81 


., 


H 


82 


SOCIAL    lOkCKS    IN    AMKRICAN    HISTORY 


and  nicrcantilL'  creditors  on  the  coast  and  the  farmer 
debtors  of  the  interior.  These  latter  were  apt  to  make 
an  alliance  with  the  wa^eworkers  of  the  hir^er  cities, 
ahhouf^h  these  were  too  little  develofjed  to  play  an 
important  part.  Consequently  the  richer  class  in  the 
colonies  did  not  feel  the  need  of  any  ciemocratic  measures 
in  order  to  secure  allies  from  the  poorer  classes  in  a  light 
against  a  crown  and  landed  nobility,  as  was  the  case  in 
England. 

We  see  the  effect  of  this  condition  in  the  character  of 
the  state  governments  formed  during  the  Revolution. 
Practically  all  of  these  were  supposed  to  be  modeled 
after  the  British  government.  Hut  there  was  an  im- 
portant difference.  Since  the  colonists  had  left  England 
the  crown  and  the  Hcjuse  of  Lords  had  ceased  to  hold 
a  dominant  position  in  the  English  government,  and  their 
importance  was  decreased  still  further  by  the  parlia- 
mentary conflict  which  was  being  waged  simultaneously 
with  the  Revolutionary  War  in  America. 

In  the  state  governments  which  were  formed  during 
the  war  to  take  the  i>lace  of  the  old  colonial  establish- 
ments, the  second  chamber,  corresponding  to  the  House 
of  Lords,  was  given  equal  power  with  the  lower  House. 
Moreover,  this  upper  House,  instead  of  being  rt'i^rcscn- 
tative  of  a  {larticular  form  of  property  relation,  and  that 
a  declining  one.  was  made  representative  of  property 
alone,  through  very  high  i)roj)erty  requirements  for 
membership  and  suffrage.  Property  qualifications  for 
voting  were  characteristic  of  all  the  state  constitutions 
adoi)ted  during  the  Revolution,  with  the  single  exception 
of  Pennsylvania.  This  would  seem  to  show  that  all  the 
line  talk  about  the  rights  of  men  and  "taxation  without 


■^mm^''y*^F 


FORMATION   OF  THi;   (JOVKRVMKNT 


83 


re[)rc>c'ntalion"  and  "all  nun  an-  created  equal"  was 
intended  only  to  secure  jjopular  support  with  whi.  h  to 
pull  some  very  hot  chestnuts  out  of  the  tire  lor  the  ruling' 
class  of  the  colonies. 

I  he  nature  of  these  stati'  governments  p'ves  an  idea 
of  the  political  forms  desired  by  rulin<,'  cla^>  interests  at 
the  time  of  llie  Revolution.  The  national  ^'overnment 
was  too  iilmy  a  thing  to  tell  any  story  clearly.  And 
yet  it  is  possible  that  this  very  indehniteness  tells  an 
ecjually  clear  story,  for  it  correspcmded  very  closely  to 
the  lack  of  a  general  industrial  life.  There  were  very 
few  interests  common  to  all  the  colonies,  and  these  few 
were  not  of  a  kind  to  overcome  the  immediate  separatist 
ones. 

At  the  outbreak  of  the  war  there  was,  of  course,  no 
central  government.  For  the  revolutionary  forces  its 
place  was  taken  by  the  conspiratory  "Comn^ittees  of 
Correspondence."  From  these  sprang  the  "Continental 
Congress,"  which  took  to  itself  more  and  more  power  as 
the  Revolution  continued.' 

It  was  this  body  that  controlled  the  movements  of  the 
army,  gave  \\'a>hington  his  commission,  declared  in- 
<lependence.  made  alliances  with  France.  Spain,  and 
Holland,  borrowed  money  and  pledged  the  credit  of  the 
combined  colonies  for  its  repayment,  issued  an  incon- 
vertible currency,  granted  letters  of  marque  and  reprisal, 
built  a  navy,  and  carried  on  peace  negotiations  when  the 
war  was  enried  Vet  this  body  had  no  legal  existence, 
no  definite  powers,  none  of  the  things  which  are  sui)posed 
to  be  the  essential  foundation  of  a  legislative  body  until 
the  war  was  over,  its  important  work  completed,  and  its 

'  John  Fiske,  "The  Critical  Period  of  American  Histor>-,"  pp.  92-93. 


«4 


s«)(  i\i.  i<»i<(i;s  i\  AMKkK  \\  ni.>T()kv 


life  .ihuut  to  end.  'I'hc  ArtiJo  of  Coiifnliration.  uliii  h 
tor  till-  !ir>t  tii)it'  i>ri)\iiK(l  tii(.--f  lhiii^>.  \\\  re  not  a(|o[)lL'(l 
1)\  tin-  v.irioii-,  slatt>  until  17S1,  and  1)\-  that  tirnt-  the 
Continental  Coni^ro^.  to  \vhi(  h  tho>i-  artiJr-  lor  the  lir>l 
linu-  iiAW  a  le^al  >anition.  Imd  (.i'a->i(l  to  plav  anv  ini- 
i)ortant  I'lnu  tioii. 

Jll■^t  as  tilt'  ConlfdiTation  was  horn,  however,  it  was 
->a\<'d  iroin  the  lalaniily  of  complete  in^iiinificann-  l)y 
heini;  made  a  property  holder.  Oni'  .if  the  oh.>taeles  to 
all  etforts  looking  toward  even  so  loo-e  a  union  as  that 
of  the  ("onfediTation  had  hev'ii  the  posse»ion  by  several 
of  the  states  of  j;reat  traits  of  westi'rn  land.  This  land 
was  elaimed  under  old  ro\al  ^'rant-,  all  of  whieh  were 
drawn  before  an\ttiini.j  was  known  about  the  internal 
,m'o,i;raphy  of  the  eountry,  and  se\er.d  of  whieli  read 
'"  from  sea  to  sea."  Some  of  the  sni.dliT  state--.  M  ir\land 
in  particular,  insisted  that  these  lands  must  be  surren- 
dered as  a  |>relude  to  any  ])lan  of  confederation.  This 
was  at  last  a^'reecl  to,  and  Maryland  ma<le  pos>ible  the  for- 
mation of  tlie  Confederation  in  1781.  This  action  ulti- 
mately assured  the  i'.\i>tence  of  a  national  government. 
The  Confederation  now  had  ;i  territory  to  govern  out- 
ride the  boundaries  of  the  federated  states.  This  terri- 
tory, allliout;h  thinly  populated,  was  almost  as  lar^e  as 
all  the  thirteen  ori.u'inal  states.  Finally,  wlien  Manas>eh 
Cutler  appeared  before  the  Continental  Congress  with 
a  proposition  to  purchase  Iart,a'  tracts  of  this  land,  and 
it  beLjan  to  appear  not  simply  in  the  li;:;ht  of  a  territory 
to  be  <:;overned.  but  also  as  a  source  of  income,  Con<iress 
roused  from  its  lethar<:y  to  alnio>t  its  only  imf'Jortant 
action  since  it  had  been  legally  constituted,  —  the  passing 
of  the  Ordinance  of  17S7. 


^m::smt 


FORMAIION   OF    nil;   (,()\  i;k\Mi  \T 


»S 


This  ordinance  providing  for  the  ori;ani/.ation  an  1 
government  of  the  j^real  territory  between  (he  Ohio,  the 
Mississii)i)i,  tlie  (ireal  Lakes,  and  the  Alle^'henies  con- 
tains some  remarkable  provisions.  There  i>,  i»f  eoiirse. 
the  famous  one  u|)on  which  the  thirteenth  anunchiient 
to  the  national  constitution  was  afterward  based,  pro- 
viding that  "There  shall  be  neither  >Iaver\  nor  involun- 
tary servitude  in  the  said  territory,  otherwise  than  in 
the  punishment  of  crimes,  whereof  the  party  shall  have 
been  duly  convicted."  Hut  there  is  also  a  complete  "bill 
of  rights,"  providing  for  religious  liberty,  the  right  of 
Ihihciis  corpus,  and  trial  by  jury,  reprc-sentative  govern- 
ment, bail  for  all  save  ca|>ital  offenses,  moderate  lines, 
no  cruel  and  unusual  punishments,  and  also  for  the 
foundation  of  a  public  school  system.  This  latter  pro- 
vision was  to  be  little  heeded  until  a  movement  of 
the  working  class  should  force  this  issue  upon  the 
peo[)]e.  These  provisions,  however,  when  contrasted 
with  the  proceedings  of  the  constitutional  convention, 
show  that  the  Continental  Congress  had  become 
much  more  of  a  popular  body  than  was  the  one  that 
wrote  the  present  fundamental  law  of  the  United 
States. 

During  the  time  of  the  Revolution,  in  spite  of  this  one 
very  important  action  by  the  Continental  Congress,  the 
real  governing  power  in  the  country  had  been  the  group 
of  individuals  who  were  in  the  midst  of  events  and  were 
making  history  rather  than  recording  its  results  in  legis- 
lation. These  were  the  men  who  best  incarnated  the 
sj)irit  c  f  the  rising  social  class.  They  were  willing  that 
the  work  of  legislation,  like  the  work  of  lighting  in 
the   ranks,  should  be  done  by  others,   providing  their 


86 


(>',:iAL  FORCF.s  i\  .\mf:kicax  history 


hands   were    upon    the    levers    thai   moved   the   social 
machinery.' 

The  American  Revolution,  like  most  wars,  was  fought 
by  those  who  had  least  interest  in  its  outcome.  The 
workers  and  "embattled  farmers."  who  as  "minute  men" 
at  Concord  "tired  the  shot  heard  round  the  world,"  and 
left  the  imprint  of  their  bleeding  feet  at  \'alley  Forge 
and  ^'orktown,  found  themselves  at  the  close  of  the  war 
hopelessly  indebted  to  the  mercantile  and  financial  class 
of  the  coast  cities.  The  Continental  currency,  with 
which  the  government  had  paid  for  suj)i)lies,  had  now 
become  valueless  in  the  hands  of  the  [producers  of  wealth. 
One  hundred  and  twelve  million  dollars  had  been  thus 
extorted  from  the  j)eople.  Taxes  were  most  inequitably 
distributed,  the  poll  tax  being  one  of  the  most  common 
methods  of  taxation.  In  Massachusetts  it  was  proposed 
to  collect  over  t'lve  million  dollars  by  this  method  from 
QO.ooo  taxpayers.  The  fisheries  were  almost  wiped  out 
during  the  war  and  only  slowly  revived  with  the  coming 
of  peace.'  McMaster  says  of  \'ermont:  "One  half  of  the 
community  was  totally  bankru[)t.  the  other  half  plunged 
in  the  depths  of  poverty."  Of  another  state  he  .says: 
"It  was  then  the  fashion  of  New  Hampshire,  as  indeed 
it  was  everywhere,  to  lock  men  up  in  jail  the  moment 
they  were  so  unfortunate  as  to  owe  their  fellows  a  six- 

'  Woodrow  Wilstin.  "History  of  the  Amcrimn  rcople,"  \'ol.  HI,  p.  22  : 
"The  (.omnnMi  affairs  of  the  tountry  had  therefore  to  he  conducted  as 
ihe  revolution  had  in  fait  been  conducted,  —  not  by  the  authority  or  the 
resohitions  of  the  Conu'ress,  \  it  by  the  extraordinary  acti\ity,  enterprise, 
and  influence  of  a  few  of  the  leadinK  men  in  the  States  who  had  union  and 
harmonious  common  efTort  at  heart." 

^American  State  I'apers,  "Commerce  and  Xaviiration,"  Vol.  I,  pp. 
0   -'  1 . 


FORMATION   OF  THK   GOVKRNMF.NT 


87 


pence  or  shilling.  Had  this  law  been  rif^orously  executed 
in  the  autumn  of  1785,  it  is  probable  that  nv)t  far  from 
two  thirds  of  the  community  would  have  been  in  the 
prisons." 

The  burden  of  debt  had  been  multiplied  by  the  de- 
preciation of  currency,  and  the  attempt  to  collect  it  in 
specie.  To  again  quote  McMaster:  "Civil  actions  were 
multiplied  to  a  degree  that  seems  scarcely  credible.  The 
lawyers  were  overwhelmed  with  cases.  The  courts  ct)uld 
not  try  half  that  came  before  them."  * 

The  wealthy  citizens  who  had  sent  their  money  to  war 
that  it  might  breed  and  multiply  found  their  bonds  would 
be  of  little  value  unless  taxes  could  be  squeezed  fn^m  the 
workers.  The  Confederacy  had  no  power  to  levy  taxes, 
or  to  collect  money  in  any  way  save  by  the  sale  of  lands 
and  bonds  and  the  issuance  of  paper  money.  There  were 
no  purchasers  for  any  of  these  commodities. 

The  manufacturers  who  had  revolted  against  British 
tariffs  were  now  looking  for  a  national  government  to 
assist  them  with  tariff  legislation.  The  Revolution,  by 
almost  completely  stopping  importations,  had  acted  on 
the  budding  manufacturers  like  a  prohibitive  tariff. 
Moreover,  the  exigencies  of  war  created  an  abnormal 
demand  for  certain  articles,  and  the  Continental  Congress 
devoted  no  small  portion  of  its  energies  to  efforts  to  en- 
courage domestic  manufactures.  The  moment  the  war 
ended,  on  the  other  hand,  there  was  a  flood  of  importa- 
tions. British  manufacturers,  especially,  were  accused 
of  "dumping"  goods  upon  the  market  at  less  than  Lon- 
don prices  for  the  especial  purpose  of  preventing  the 

■  McMaster,  " History'  of  the  People  of  the  United  States,"  Vol.  I, 
p.  30J. 


■mmmr^ 


88 


SDCIAL   FOkCi:.S    IN   AMERICAN   HISTORY 


growth  of  American  manufactures.  We  arc  not  surprised 
to  learn  that  "By  no  class  of  the  community  was  the 
formation  of  the  new  governmen'  and  its  general  adop- 
tion by  the  states,  more  zealously  urged  than  by  the 
friends  of  American  manufactures."  ' 

The  paramount  interest  of  the  time  was  commercial, 
and  it  was  fitting  that  commerce  should  play  the  largest 
part  in  the  formation  of  the  new  government.  Com- 
merce demanded  a  powerful  central  government.  Xo 
other  could  alTord  protection  in  foreign  ports,  provide 
for  uniform  regulations  throughout  the  country,  make 
and  enforce  commercial  treaties,  and  maintain  the  gen- 
eral conditions  essential  to  profitable  trading.  As 
Fisher  Ames  said  in  the  first  Congress :  — 

"I  conceive,  sir,  that  the  present  constitution  was 
dictated  by  commercial  necessity,  more  than  any  other 
cause.  The  want  of  an  efficient  government  to  secure 
the  manufacturing  interests,  and  to  advance  our  com- 
merce, was  long  seen  by  men  of  judgment,  and  pointed 
out  by  patriots  solicitous  to  promote  the  general  welfare. "- 

All  of  these  interests  were  confined  to  the  New  England 
and  Middle  states.  Unless  a  class  could  be  found  in  the 
South  that  was  also  interested  in  a  centralized  govern- 
ment, there  could  be  little  hope  of  forming  a  union.  In 
the  North  the  farmers  were  opposed  to  a  central  govern- 
ment and  the  merchants  were  its  friends.  In  the  South 
the  reverse  was  true.  There  the  great  planters,  who  were 
the  social  rulers,  favored  the  formation  of  the  union.     The 


'  Bishop,  "Histor>-  of  .^merican  Manufactures,'  Vol.  I,  p.  422. 

■"  .Annals  of  Congress,  Vol.  I,  p.  230.  Sec  also  "Historv-  of  Suffolk 
County,  Massachusetts,"  Vol.  II,  p.  84;  and  \V.  C.  Webster,  "General 
Ilistof}'  of  Conunerce,"  p.  341. 


FORMATION'   OF    THi:    (lOVKRN'MFXT 


8.) 


explanation  of  this  is  found  in  the  fait  that  the  planters 
of  the  South  (Hd  their  own  exporting,  but  ditl  it  tlirougli 
English  merchants.  The  hitter  were  driving  a  prolitable 
trade  through  their  control  of  im|)()rtati(jns  and  the  chan- 
nels of  export.  I'he  merchants  were  growing  rich  and 
the  planters  poor.  The  latter  saw  a  ])o.->ibility  of  relief 
in  an  internal  commerce  and  in  the  development  of  do- 
mestic shipping  with  the  opening  of  the  West  Indian 
trade  through  commercial  treaties.' 

To  collect  debts,  public  and  private,  to  levy  a  tariff 
for  the  benefit  of  ''infant  industries,"  to  protect  the 
fisheries  and  pay  bounties  to  the  fishers,  to  assist  the 
Southern  planter  in  marketing  his  crops,  and  to  secure 
commercial  treaties  and  guard  commercial  interests  in 
all  parts  of  the  world  a  centralized  government  was 
needed.  Those  who  desired  such  a  government  were, 
numerically  speaking,  an  insignificant  minority  of  the 
population,  but,  once  more,  they  were  the  class  whose 
interests  were  bound  up  with  progress  toward  a  higher 
social  stage.  In  advancing  their  interests  this  wealthy 
class  of  i)lantcrs.  merchants,  and  manufacturers  was 
really  building  for  future  progress. 

The  wageworking,  farming,  and  debtor  class  naturally 
had  no  desire  for  a  strong  central  government.  These 
desired  above  all  relief  from  the  crushing  burden  of  debt. 
They  sought  this  relief  in  new  issues  of  paper  money,  in 
"stay  laws"  postponing  the  collection  of  debts,  and  in 
restrictions  on  the  powers  of  the  courts.  In  regard  to 
government  they  cried  out  for  economy  and  low  taxes. 
The   ever    recurring   populistic    feud    between    frontier 

•  McMaslcr,  "IIistor>-  of  the  People  of  llie  United  i^iates,"  \'ol.  1, 


':m 


90 


SOCIAL    FOKCHS    I\    AMERICAN    III.^TOKV 


di-btors  and  roast  crcdiUjrs  made  its  ai)nearance.  The 
former  were  in  an  overwhelming  majority,  but  they 
lacked  cohesion,  collective  energy,  and  intelligence,  — 
in  short,  cla^s  consciousness. 

It  was  in  Massachusetts  that  the  struggle  bec:'.me 
especially  violent.  The  populistic  debtors  elected  a 
legislature  pledged  to  carry  out  their  [)rogram.  When 
the  legislature  met,  influences  were  brought  to  bear  ui)on 
it  by  the  credit(jr  class  of  Boston  that  caused  its  mem- 
bers to  break  their  pledges.  Angered  at  this  anarchistic 
defeat  of  the  popular  will,  the  farmers  began  to  defy  and 
intimidate  the  courts.  As  almost  invariably  happens, 
when  a  working  class  ri.ses.  collectivist  ideas  found  ex- 
pression. (Jencral  Knox,  then  Secretary  of  War,  who 
was  sent  by  the  Continental  Congress  to  investigate  the 
situation,  reported  that 

"Their  creed  is  that  the  property  of  the  United  States 
has  been  protected  from  the  confiscation  of  Britain  by 
the  joint  exertions  of  all.  and  therefore  ought  to  be  the 
common  property  of  all."  ' 

When  the  courts  attempted  to  force  the  collection  of 
debts  from  those  who  had  nothing,  the  desperate  debtors 
rallied  to  arms  under  the  leadershii)  of  Daniel  Shays, 
a  veteran  of  the  Revolution,  and  cajitured  some  of 
the  smaller  cities.  Although  there  was  no  money  in  the 
treasury  of  Massachusetts  with  which  to  carry  on  the 
functions  of  government,  yet  the  militia  was  called  out 
to  shoot  down  these  starving  veterans  of  the  Revolution, 
and  the  wealthy  merchants  and  bankers  of  Boston  ad- 
vanced the  money  with  which  to  pay  the  troops.^ 

'  Irvine.  "I-it'e  of  \V;i<hintrIon,"  Vol.  IV,  p.  4:5,. 

•  Mi:Mu..lcr,  "iliitory  of  ihc  rcople  of  liie  United  butes,"  \ol.  I, 


.  fc* 


^r^MBMM^L'' 


:<_..>' W " 


it^^nr. 


FCJR.MATION    OF   THK   CA)\  KRN.MKNT 


91 


There  was  a  similar  situation  in  Rhode  Island,  with 
the  difference  that  in  this  state  tlie  debtors  were  able 
to  seize  the  legislature  and  force  it  to  do  their  will.  The 
result  was  something  very  like  civil  war.  with  tlie  debtors 
trying  to  force  their  creditors  to  accept  the  pajUT  money 
that  had  been  issued.  Here.  also,  we  hnd  the  collectivi>t 
idea,  coupled  with  a  crude  sort  of  state  socialism  which, 
as  populism,  became  familiar  on  the  western  prairies 
more  than  1     .ntury  later. 

''A  convention  of  all  the  towns  in  Providence  count v 
n  et  at  Smithfield  to  consult  upon  further  measures  of 
hostility  toward  the  merchants,  whom  they  accused  of 
exporting  specie,  and  thus  causing  the  distresses  of  the 
State.  A  j)lan  of  '  State  trade  '  was  projnjsed,  to  be  sub- 
mitted to  the  General  Assembly,  and  the  Ciovernor  was 
requested  to  call  a  special  session  for  that  purpose.  The 
plan  was  for  the  State  to  provide  vessels  and  import 
goods  on  its  own  account,  under  direction  of  a  committee 
of  the  legislature ;  that  produce,  lumber,  and  labor,  as 
well  as  money,  should  be  received  in  payment  of  taxes, 
and  thus  furnish  cargoes  in  return  for  which  specie  and 
goods  could  be  obtained.  Interest  certificates  were  no 
longer  to  be  received  in  payment  of  duties,  but  the 
private  importers  were  to  be  conifielled  to  pay  them  in 
money.  The  act  making  notes  of  hand  negotiable  was 
to  be  repealed,  and  the  statute  of  limitation  shortened  to 
two  years."  ' 

These  uprisings  gave  the  final  jar  that  was  necessary 
to  solidify  the  forces  working  for  a  national  government. 


PP- .^'8-310;  G.  R.  Minot,  "Histor>-of  the  In^urri-i  tion  in  .Massachusetts 
in  17S6." 

'  b.  ti.  .\rnold,  "Histon- of  the  Stale  of  Rhode  I^Iand,"  Vol.  11,  p.  Z24. 


92 


SOCIAL   FOKCKS    IX   AMKRICAX   HISTORY 


Until  the  threat  arose  of  the  capture  of  two  or  more  states 
by  the  masses,  there  were  many  even  of  the  wealthy 
classes  who  were  inclined  to  think  that  their  intere>ts 
might  be  best  furthered  by  several  separate  states. 

"But  the  rebellion  of  Shays  broke  out.  In  an  instant 
public  opinion  changed  completely.  Stern  patriots. 
who,  while  all  went  well,  talked  of  the  dangers  of  baneful 
aristocracies,  soon  learned  to  talk  of  the  dangers  of  bane- 
ful democracies."  ' 

There  are  few  things  more  striking  than  this  complete 
ch;;nge  of  front  by  the  budding  capitalists  of  Revolu- 
tionary times  in  obedience  to  material  class  interests.  In 
1776  they  were  all  for  paper  money,  restriction  of  the 
power  of  the  courts,  "natural  rights,"  and  the  whole 
string  of  democratic  princij^les.  By  1786  they  had  re- 
jected all  these  principles  and  were  defending  most  of  the 
positions  of  the  English  government  of  King  George, 
while  the  prerevolutionary  principles  were  left  for  debt- 
ridden  farmers  and  w<^rkingmen.  It  is  at  least  interest- 
ing to  learn  that  the  ruling  class  had  even  the  same 
demagogues  to  secure  popular  support,  and  that  Sam 
Adams  was  now  an  ardent  defender  of  the  creditor 
class. ^ 

The  framing  of  the  Constitution  under  these  condi- 
tions took  on  much  of  the  character  of  a  secret  conspira- 
tory  coup  d'etat.  '■>ucL  as  most  historians  congratulate 
America  on  having  escaped.  The  little  group  of  indi- 
viduals who  best  represented  the  ruling  class,  and  who 
had    dominated    throughout    the   Revolution,    were,    to 


h. 


'  McMastcr,  "History  of  the  People  of  the  United  States,"  Vol.  I, 

P-  .301- 

■^  J.  K.  Hosmer,  "bam  .\dams,  The  -Man  ot  the  lown-.Mccting,    p.  51. 


^^mi^. 


FORMATION   OF   TIIK   GOVr:RNMi;NT 


93 


a  large  extent,  losing  their  control.  They  now  set  about 
recai)luring  it  through  a  secret  counter-revolution. 

The  lirst  stej)  was  an  invitation  from  Washington  to 
visit  him  at  his  home  at  Mt.  Vernon.  e.xteiKk-d  to  com- 
missioners api)oInle(l  by  Maryland  an<l  Virginia  to  con- 
sider methods  of  n-gulating  commerce  in  Chesapeake 
Ray.  These  men  arranged  for  a  commercial  convention 
at  Anna[)oli.>.  Si'ptember  ii.  17S6,  and  an  address  was 
issued  which  carefully  wove  in  with  the  local  questions 
general  hints  of  the  need  for  wider  national  arrangements. 
This  whole  matter  is  set  forth  in  a  report  of  the  French 
minister.  Otto,  to  his  chief,  Count  \'ergennes,and  as  he  was 
more  nearly  an  impartial  observer  than  almost  any  one 
else  who  has  reported  these  events,  it  might  be  well  to  let 
him  tell  the  story.    He  says,  writing  October  10,  1786  :  — 

"Although  there  are  no  nobles  in  .\merica,  there  is  a 
class  of  men,  denominated  gentlemen,  who,  by  reason  of 
their  wealth,  their  talents,  their  education,  their  families, 
or  the  offices  they  hold,  aspire  to  a  preeminence  which 
the  people  refuse  to  grant  them  ;  and  although  many  of 
these  men  have  betrayed  th.e  interests  of  their  order  10 
gain  popularity,  there  reigns  among  them  a  connection  so 
much  the  more  intimate  as  they  almost  all  of  them  dread 
the  elTorts  of  the  people  to  despoil  them  of  their  posses- 
sions, and,  moreover,  they  arc  creditors,  and  therefore 
interested  in  strengthening  the  government  and  watching 
over  the  execution  of  the  laws.  ...  By  proposing  a 
new  organization  of  the  general  government  all  minds 
would  have  been  revolted  ;  circumstances  ruinous  to  the 
commerce  of  America  have  happily  arisen  to  furnish  the 
reformers  with  a  pretext  for  introducing  innovations. 


tJfL^  .  m 


94 


SOCIAL    FOkLIiS    I\    AMKKICAN    HISTORY 


"The  authors  of  this  proposition  fthc  Annapolis  con- 
vention) had  no  hoi)e  nor  even  desire  to  see  the  success  of 
this  assembly  of  commissioners  which  was  only  intended 
it)  prepare  a  question  more  important  than  that  of  com- 
merce. The  measures  were  so  well  taken  that  at  the  vnd 
of  September  no  more  than  t'lve  states  were  represented 
in  Anna[)olis,  and  the  commissioners  from  the  northern 
states  tarried  several  days  at  Xew  \'ork  in  order  t(.  retard 
their  arrival.  The  states  which  assembled  after  havinj? 
wailed  nearly  three  weeks  separated  under  the  pretext 
that  they  were  insufficient  in  numbers  to  enter  on  the 
business,  and  to  justify  this  dissolution  they  addressed  to 
the  different  legislatures  and  to  Congress  a  report."  • 

All  this  scheme  is  e.xposed  and  its  character  admitted 
by  Madison  in  jxipers  written  by  him  and  discovered  after 
his  death.  Delegates  to  this  convention  purposely 
remained  away  in  pursuance  of  a  cons{)iracy  to  prevent 
the  action  for  which  it  was  ostensibly  called.  It  was 
then  possible  to  go  to  the  Continental  Congress  with  the 
plea  that  the  commercial  arrangements  for  which  it  was 
pretended  these  two  gatherings  had  been  called,  were  so 
pressing  that  a  larger  body  must  be  convened.  The 
Continental  Congress  then  passed  a  resolutior  in  February, 
1787,  saying  that  it  was  expedient  that  a  convention  of 
delegates  from  the  several  states  be  held  in  Philadelphia 
in  May  "for  the  sole  and  express  purpose  of  revising  the 
Articles  of  Confederation,  and  reporting  to  Congress  and 

'  Quoted  in  H.  J.  Forr),  "The  Rise  and  Growth  of  American  Politics," 
pp.  40-4.V  See  also  Morse,  "Lilc  of  Hamilton,"  \ol.  I,  pp.  212-2M; 
H.  Von  Foist,  "Constitutional  Histon,-  of  the  United  States,"  Vol.  I, 
pp.  50-51  ;  T.  \Vat>on,  "Life  and  Times  of  Thomas  JetTerson,"  p.  292; 
SLiiuukr,  "Hibtorj-  01  the  Lniied  btiiles,"  \  ol.  I,  pp.  i2~ii. 


:^-   iii^r -,.■-, 


FORMATION   OF   THK   (.OVKRNMFNT 


95 


the  several  legislatures  such  alterations  and  i)r()visi()ns 
therein  as  shall,  when  agreed  to  in  Congress  antl  (on- 
lirnied  by  the  states,  render  the  Federal  Constitution  ade- 
(juate  to  the  exigencies  of  government  and  the  preserva- 
tion of  the  union." 

This  was  the  only  form  of  legality  in  the  calling  of  the 
body  that  formulated  the  fundamental  law  of  the  United 
States;  and  no  sooner  had  that  body  assemble<l  than  it 
proceeded  to  break  this  one  link  which  was  supposed  to 
give  it  a  legal  sanction.  It  absolutely  disregarded  the 
conditions  of  its  existence  as  fixed  by  Congress,  and  pro- 
ceeded to  formulate  an  entirely  new  government,  and 
never  bothered  to  report  to  the  Congress  to  which  it  was 
supposed   to  be  subordinate. 

After  this  one  short  api)earance  in  public,  the  con- 
sjiirators  again  took  to  darkness.  They  observed  the 
most  elaborate  precautions  to  preserve  the  secrecy  of 
their  deliberations.  They  forbaile  the  keeping  of  any 
notes,  and  refused  to  give  out  any  information  as  to  their 
actions.  In  spite  of  this  rule  James  Madison  took  copious 
notes,  which  were  published  aln.  ist  a  half  century  later. 
These  notes  arc  almost  our  only  source  of  information 
concerning  the  proceedings,  as  the  only  other  person  who 
kept  notes  left  the  convention  in  disgust  before  it  had 
completed  its  work.  As  Madison  was  one  of  the  most 
conservative  members  of  the  convention  and  the  one 
most  responsible  for  its  conspiratory  character,  we  may 
be  sure  that  if  any  bias  is  to  be  found  in  his  report,  it  will 
not  be  in  the  direction  of  the  unpopular  side. 

Nevertheless,  these  debates,  as  rejiorted,  afford  ample 
evidence  that  the  constitutional  convention  was  little 
more  than  a  committee  of  the  merchants,  manufacturers, 


96 


SOCIAL    FOKCKS    I\    AMI  KIC.W    HISTOKV 


bankers,  and  [)IantiTs.  met  to  arrange  a  government  that 
would  promote  tlu-ir  intercuts.  Oniy  twelve  states  were 
rciire-cnterl  at  the  be<;inniiig.  and  one  of  these  dropped 
out  before  the  end.  Of  sixty-five  delegates  elected  only 
fifty -five  were  ever  i)resent,  and  l)ut  thirty-nine  signed 
the  final  report.  Throughout  the  diMUssions  the  utmost 
contempt  for  the  mass  of  the  peo[)le  was  dis|)layed. 
Madison  and  Hamilton,  who  had  nio>t  to  do  witli  the 
formation  of  the  constitution,  were  in  favor  of  j)lacing 
power  as  far  as  possible  from  the  people  and  giving  prt)p- 
crty  es|)ecial  rei)resentation.  The  attitude  of  the  con- 
vention is  shown  by  an  expression  used  by  Kllsworth  of 
Connecticut  in  ()[)posing  any  action  restricting  slavery. 
''Let  us  not  intermeddle,"  he  said.  "As  population 
increases  poor  laborers  will  be  so  plenty  as  to  render 
slaves  useless."  ' 

It  has  been  pointed  out  that  with  the  return  of  peace 
the  wealthy  classes,  including  those  who  had  remained 
Loyalists  during  the  actual  fight,  returned  to  power.^ 
The  merchants  of  Boston,  frightened  at  Shays'  Rebellion,' 
the  manufacturers  of  Pennsylvania,  anxious  for  protec- 
tion.^ i.;d  wishing  to  restrict  the  growing  power  of  the 
western  districts,'  the  commercial  classes  of  the  South, 
desiring  a  central  government  for  the  settlement  of  dis- 
putes concerning  navigable  rivers.  -  all  of  these  wer^ 
oi^posed  to  democracy.     All  were  anxious  to  secure  their 

'  J.  Allen  Smith,  "The  Spirit  of  AmsTii  :ui  ('mvernment ,"  pp.  27-3Q. 

*  ".Memorial    History   of    IJoslon,"  Justin  Wiiibor  (editor).  Vol.    IV, 
PP-  74   -,v 

'  J.  I..  liisliop,  "IIi>ton,-  of  Ameriain  Manufacturers,"  Vol.  II,  p.  14. 

*  -M.   Farrand,  "  t'omi)r()niises  of  the  Constitution,"  American  Ilis- 
ivrhr.l    A';-. •',-.;■,    p.    4,-%;.    .\iirii.    UV04. 

'  William  C.  Webster,  "General  History  of  Commerce,"  p.  341. 


t:^^^ 


lOKMATIoN    or    nil.    (.(A  i:kNMi:NT 


97 


privileges   against   attack   l)y  tlie   disrontrntfd   dcljlors, 
frontiersmen,  farmers,  and  wageworkers. 

It  was  from  these  (hi-^-e<.  in-pirrd  I)}'  thc>i'  motives, 
that  the  (U-Iegales  were  drawn  that  framed  tlie  eon>ti- 
tution.  "There  is  no  <ioul)t  that  the  new  (()n>titution 
was  framed  primarily  in  the  intere>t  of  the  indu>lrial 
anil  commercial  dashes,  anil  war>  linall\-  ratilnil  larijely  as 
a  result  of  their  acti\  e  and  intelligent  work  in  it-  hihalf." 

Having  formu.ated  a  ion>titution.  the  next  >tep  was 
to  secure  something  that  would  at  k'a>t  have  the  appear- 
ance of  a  p<jpular  acceptance  of  the  document.  Since 
fully  two  thirds  of  the  poj)ulation  were  opi)o>e(l  to  any 
such  adoption,  and  remained  so  long  after  it  had  become 
a  law,  it  might  ha\'e  api)eared  that  the  fr.imers  of  the 
constitution  had  an  impossible  task  upon  their  hands. 
Fortunately  for  them  it  was  not  neces.sary  to  take  a 
popular  vote.  The  referendum  had  not  yet  been  acce[)t<-'' 
as  a  principle  of  political  action,  and  the  statement  of  i. 
Declaration  of  Independence  that  "all  governments 
derive  their  just  powers  from  the  consent  of  the  governed  "' 
had  been  relegated  to  the  limbo  of  political  platitudes. 

The  work  of  imposing  the  constitution  upon  the  coun- 
try was  further  lightened  by  the  fact  that  at  least  three 
fourths  of  those  who  would  to-day  constitute  the  elec- 
torate were  then  disfranchised.  Moreover,  the  disfran- 
chised ones  were  just  those  who  were  ahnost  unanimous 
against  the  constitution.  Property  ciuiditlcaticms  shut 
out  the  working  class  of  the  cities  and  the  debtors  of  the 
back  country.  Out  of  a  population  of  ,:^ ,000.000  not  more 
than  120.000  were  entitled  to  even  vote  for  those  who 
were  to  constitute  the  state  conventions  th;it  were  to 
consider  the  constitution, 
u 


98 


S<HI\I.    lORCI.S    I.N   AMKklCAN    MISTOKY 


Tlic  lit!  uMtcs  ti»  th('--i'  ( onvcTUioiis  wiTi'  generally 
t-Kitcil  on  the  >;uiic  ba>is  as  the  nu-mbers  of  the  various 
state  lf;^i~Iaturcs.  'I'his  a;,'ain  ^ave  an  im  riascd  advan- 
ta^'c-  to  the  (kl'('n(lcr>  of  the  ton^titution,  as  the  states  had 
})een  (list  rii  ted  with  the  delinite  object  in  view  of  di.i- 
iriiniiiatin^  a^ainst  the  baik-iountry  districts. 

In  a  tnonoj^'raph  on  "The  ( ieo^raphical  Distribution  of 
the  \'ote  of  the  Tliirteen  States  on  the  Federal  (Constitu- 
tion," by  Orin  (i.  I.ibby,  the  economic  interest  back  of 
the  (lelej,Mtes  to  each  of  the  state  conventions  is  carefully 
investigated.  The  result  shows  a  reco{,'nition  of  class 
interests  almost  marvelous  when  we  consider  the  generally 
unde\elopi'd  industrial  condition  of  the  tinK  The 
frontiersmen,  the  farmers,  the  debtors,  the  people  who 
lived  in  the  country  and  [)osscssed  little  property,  were 
almost  solidly  a^'aiiist  the  constitution.  The  merchants, 
the  money  lenders,  the  lawyers,  the  great  landowners, 
and  the  planters,  and  those  directly  under  their  influence 
those  delegates  who  voted  for  the  constitution. 

In  spite  of  gerrymandering  and  disfranchisement,  in 
spite  of  the  marvelous  special  pleading  of  Hamilton  and 
Madison,  whose  political  pamphlets  in  advocacy  of  the 
constitution  were  destined  to  bec(>me  the  classic  com- 
mentaries on  that  document ;  in  spite  of  the  tremendous 
inlluence  of  its  jiowerful  friends,  it  was  long  before  a 
sufficient  number  of  the  states  would  indorse  it  to  make 
possible  a  further  step.  Many  of  those  who  did  indorse  it 
Cjualified  that  indorsement  with  a  provision  for  a  "bill 
t)f  rights,"  and  this  was  provided  for  at  the  first  session 
of  Congress.  Otherwise  there  would  have  been  no 
guarantee  of  freedom  of  speech,  assemblage,  and  press,  or 
of  trial  by  jury,  or  freedom  of  contract,  or  of  any  of  those 


i 


?^ 


FORMATION   OF  TIIK    GOVKRNMKNT 


99 


things  which  constitutions,  even  ;it  that  time,  were  sup- 
posed to  be  established  mainly  to  secure. 

Kliode  Island  refused  even  thi.->  (jualilied  indt)rsement. 
Although  the  Articles  of  Confederation  provided  for 
unanimous  action  before  any  law  should  be  binding,  yet 
steps  were  taken  to  organize  the  new  government  as 
soon  as  ten  states  had  given  their  agreement,  and  linally 
Rhode  Island  was  threatened  with  force  to  compel  its 
consent. 

To  sum  up:  the  organic  law  of  this  nation  was  formu- 
lated in  secret  session  by  a  body  called  into  existence 
tlirough  a  conspiratory  trick,  and  was  forced  upon  a 
disfranchised  people  by  means  of  a  dishonest  apportion- 
ment in  order  that  the  interests  of  a  small  body  of  wealthy 
rulers  might  be  served.  This  should  not  blind  us  to  the 
fact  that  this  small  ruling  class  really  represented  prog- 
ress, that  a  unified  government  was  essential  to  that  in- 
dustrial and  social  growth  which  has  made  this  country 
possible.  It  also  should  not  blind  us  to  the  fact  that  there 
was  nothing  particularly  sacred  about  the  origin  of  this 
government  which  should  render  any  attempt  to  change 
it  sacrilegious. 


I 


CHAPTER   IX 

INDUSTRIAL  CONDITIONS    AT   THE    REGINNING   OF   THE 
AMERICAN   GfJVERNMENT 


The  industriiil  foundaliDn  for  national  solidarity  was 
slight  when  the  American  government  was  born  in  17S9. 
The  ruling  classes  of  the  different  states  had  been  drawn 
together  by  the  conmion  fear  of  a  pioletarian  uprising 
and  the  common  need  for  a  central  government  to  further 
a  few  immediate  interests.  A  decade  might  easily  bring 
such  a  divergence  in  these  interests  that  the  central 
government  would  disintegrate.  The  only  thing  that 
could  {prevent  this  would  be  the  growth  of  a  national 
industrial  life. 

The  size  of  any  industrial  unit  and  of  the  political 
establishment  based  upon  it  de{)end  upon  the  character 
and  extent  of  the  transj)ortation  system.  The  method 
of  transporting  goods  determines  the  extent  of  the  mar- 
ket. It  is  .seldom  that  a  political  unit  is  larger  than  the 
circle  of  the  market  for  the  great  staples  (jf  [).-oduction. 
There  have  been  exceptions  to  this  rule,  but  they  have 
usually  been  short-lived  or  had  some  peculiar  cx{)lanation. 

When  Washington  took  the  presidential  chair,  methods 
of  transi^ortation  in  the  United  States  ditTered  little  from 
those  which  prevailed  in  Roiiic  when  she  was  mistress 
of  the  then  known  world.     What  ailvantage  there  might 


ii   lilt;  ur.ici    i.r,  iii,--aiion. 


100 


INDUSTRIAL   CONDITION'S 


lOI 


The  commerce  of  Rome  in  the  days  of  C;esar  moved  over 
roads  whose  very  ruins  are  the  wonder  and  admiration 
of  modern  engineers.  American  commerce  at  the  close 
of  the  eighteenth  century  was  painfully  dragged  over 
corduroy  roads,  through  unbridgL'd  rivers  and  morasses 
of  mud,  that  made  a  pre  fitable  interchange  of  heavy 
goods  over  long  distances  impossible. 

The  arrangements  for  the  transmission  of  intelligence 
were  little  more  elTective  than  those  for  the  carrying  of 
merchandise.  When  independence  was  declared,  there 
were  only  twenty-eight  post  ofVices  in  all  the  thirteen 
colonies.  Fourteen  years  later,  when  Washington  had 
occupied  the  presidential  chair  for  a  year  and  the  new 
administrative  machine -y  Wi^s  fairly  well  installed,  there 
were  still  but  seventy-live.  Yet  the  population  was  over 
three  millions.  A  population  of  equal  number  to-day, 
if  as  widely  dispersed,  would  have  several  thousand  post 
otlices  to  minister  to  its  wants. 

To  maintain  even  these  miserable  accommodations, 
postal  rates  were  so  high  as  to  be  almost  prohibitive  for 
ordinary  intercourse  among  the  poorer  classes  of  th'j 
population.  The  minimum  charge  for  a  single  sheet  of 
paper  going  less  than  thirty  miles  was  si.x  cents.  Then 
the  rates  rapidly  increased  until  to  send  a  single  .sheet 
more  than  four  hundred  and  fifty  miles  cost  twenty-five 
cents.  Additional  sheets  increased  the  amount  still 
further.  Xews{)apers  were  taken  only  at  the  {)leasure  of 
the  mail  carriers.  Consequently  correspondence  was 
largely  confined  to  communications  on  i)ublic  matters. 

Only  four  cities  had  a  {K){>ulation  of  over  10,000.  Of 
'.hese  Xew  York  kxi  with  about  ,p,ooo,  having  but  re- 
cently pushed  into  first  place  above  Philadelphia  with 


m^ 


102 


SOCIAL  FORCES   I\   AMLRICAN   HISTORY 


28,000.  Boslon  claimed  18.000,  Charleston,  South  Caro- 
lina. lO.ooo,  and  Halliinore,  13.000. 

l'"()ur  fifths  of  the  p()i)ulation  were  en^^aged  in  agricul- 
ture, or  perhaps  it  would  be  more  nearly  correct  to  say 
that  the  group  of  diversified  industries  which  were  then 
included  under  the  name  of  agriculture  embraced  four 
fifths  of  the  industrial  life  of  the  time.  Hut  these  farmers 
harvested  their  grain  with  sickles  such  as  Ruth  saw  in  the 
fields  of  Boaz.  They  threshed  their  grain  with  a  flail, 
such  as  their  Aryan  ancestors  brought  from  the  plains 
of  central  Asia  wlicn  they  set  forth  on  that  long  racial 
march  l  ward  the  setting  si'-v  of  which  the  colonization 
of  America  was  the  latest,  longest  step.  .Mthough 
Jefferson  was  mathematically  calculating  a  i)low  that 
would  do  its  work,  with  the  least  expenditure  of  energy, 
two  generations  were  to  come  and  go  before  plows 
constructed  upon  scientific  principles  were  to  appear  on 
American  farms.  In  the  meantime,  the  fields  were  dug 
up  with  shari)ened  sticks  i)ointed  willi  iron,  fashioned 
much  after  those  of  which  present-day  travelers  to  Egypt 
and  India  and  central  Russia  send  jiostal  card  photo- 
grai)hs  to  friends  at  home. 

Cattle,  horses,  hogs,  and  sheep  v.-ere  of  a  character  that 
no  modern  farmer  would  permit  to  encumber  his  fields. 
Cattle  were  kept  almost  exclusively  for  their  hides  and 
meat,  and  as  draft  animals.  Here  and  there  in  New 
England  some  butter  and  cheese  were  made.  But  the 
cow  as  a  machine  for  the  tnmsformation  of  a  "balanced 
ration"  into  a  definite  quantity  of  milk  and  cream  at 
the  least  possible  expense  had  scarcely  been  dreamed  of. 
She  must  still  be  capable  of  foraging  her  food  in  the  forest 
through  the  greater  part  of  the  year  and  of  enduring  the 


V    »., 


U^^M-^v 


INDUSTRIAL  CONTDITIONS 


^03 


rigors  of  a  Xorthern  winter  without  shelter.  "Hollow 
horn,"  a  disease  caused  by  extreme  cold,  exposure,  and 
insufficient  feed,  killed  many  animals  yearly. 

Although  Messenger,  the  father  of  the  American 
Hamiltonian  strain  of  trotting  horses,  was  imported  in 
1786,  and  Justin  Morgan,  the  sire  of  the  once  famous 
Morgan  horses  (a  strain  that  great  efforts  are  now  heing 
made  to  revive),  was  born  in  1793.  the  horses  of  this  time 
were  few  in  number  and  generally  mi^erable  in  character. 

The  hog  of  that  day  was  compelled  to  live  in  an  en- 
vironment, one  of  whose  conditions  of  survival  was  to 
hunt  h'>  own  food  in  the  forest  and  dodge  wild  animals 
while  )ing  so.  and  then  be  able  to  stand  a  drive  of  sev- 
eral hundred  miles  to  a  distant  market.'     He  bore  little 

'  Parkinson,  who  wrote  of  a  lour  made  afx)ut  lhi>  time,  doiriticd  the 
hoRsthat  he  saw  in  the  following  hmiiuaRc  (p.  H)o)  :  "  The  real  .\meri(  an 
h(ip  is  what  is  termed  the  wood-hof;;  they  are  long  in  the  leR,  narrow  on 
t!ie  back,  short  in  the  body,  flat  on  their  sides,  with  a  ion^;  snout,  very 
rough  in  their  hair,  in  make  more  hke  the  fish  railed  a  [K-rchlhan  any- 
thing I  can  describe.  N'ou  may  as  well  think  of  sto[)ping  a  (row as  those 
hoes.  They  will  go  to  a  distance  from  a  fence,  take  a  run,  and  leap 
through  the  rails,  three  or  four  feet  from  the  grojnd,  turning  themsi'lves 
sidewise.  These  hogs  sufler  such  hardship  as  no  other  animal  could  en- 
dure. It  is  customary  to  keep  them  in  the  vvrxxls  all  winter,  as  there  are 
no  threshing-  or  fold-yards;  anfl  they  must  live  on  the  ro<ils  of  trees,  or 
something  of  that  sort ;  hut  thej' are  poor  l)cyond  any  creature  t'-.at  I 
e\er  saw.  That  is  [)robably  the  cause  why  the  .\mcrican  pork  is  so  fine. 
I  am  not  certain  with  .American  keeping  and  treatment  if  the)  are  not  the 
best;  for  I  never  saw  any  animal  live  without  fo<Kl,  except  this: 
and  I  am  pretty  sure  they  nearly  rlo  that.  When  they  are  fed,  the 
flesh  may  well  he  sweet ;  it  is  all  >oung,  though  the  pig  be  ten  years  olde 
and  like  pigs  in  general,  they  only  act  as  a  conveyance  to  (arr>-  corn  t(t 
markc'.."  Fir  further  information  on  agricultural  condition-^  at  this  time 
see  H.  E.  .\lvord,"  Dairy  Development  in  the  United  Stales"  in  Report 
of  Bureau  of  .Animal  Industry  for  i8gg.  p.  245  et  seq.;  Captain  William- 
son, "  Description  of  the  Settlement  of  the  (jenesce  "^^ountry  in  the  State 
of  Xew  York"  U799).  PP-  32-41 ;  W.  Fau.x,  "  Memorable  I'-iys  in  .\mer- 


104  SOCIAL   FORCES   IN   AMERICAN   HISTORY 


resemblance  to  the  highly  pcrfct  led  pork -producing 
ma(  hine  of  the  modern  fat  stock  show. 

Considerable  eiTort  had  been  made  to  improve  the 
breed  of  sheep  because  of  the  pressing  need  of  a  domestic 
sup[)ly  of  wool  for  weaving.  Laws  forbidding  the  slaugh- 
ter of  sheep  for  mutton  had  been  {)assed  in  several  states, 
and  premiums  were  quite  generally  otTered  to  encourage 
sheep  breeding.  The  first  Merinos  were  imported  in 
1793,  and  frequent  importations  from  Spain  followed  in 
spite  of  the  elTorts  of  Spain  to  prevent  such  action. 

Southern  industry  still  rested  primarily  upon  the 
tobacco  crop,  which  was  less  profitable  than  it  liad  once 
been.  Exhaustive  methods  of  ex[)loiting  the  soil  in  its 
production  were  driving  the  plantations  farther  and 
farther  from  the  seaboard  and  the  river  banks.  Cotton 
was  still  ginned  by  hand,  although  Eli  Whitney  wa-^ 
working  on  the  model  of  the  first  cotton  gin.  Hand 
ginning  was  so  expensive  that  cotton  raising  was  not 
profitable.  We  are  not,  therefore,  much  surprised  to 
learn  that  there  was  a  strong  abolition  sentiment  in 
Maryland  and  Virginia,  where  the  slaves  on  the  worn- 
out  tobacco  plantations  were  no  longer  earning  their 
"keep,"  and  where  they  could  be  bought  for  from  one 
to  two  hundred  dollars.  The  rice  industry,  too,  was  just 
ready  for  a  transformation.  The  first  machine  for 
winnowing  rice  was  invented  in  174Q.  \  machine  for 
hulling  and  another  for  threshing  it  from  the  straw 
were    invented    just    as    the    eighteenth    century    was 


closing. 


iia"  (iSjO.  PP-  7-^7,^  n.^  ',^0,  14.^;  DcMlt'e,  "\Ve>t  \"iri;ini.i,"  |).  4^; 
William  fl.  Smith,  "  HistDP,- of  the  State  of  Indiana."  \'ol.  II,  pp.  fi'ii-Cfu  ; 
Ileary  .Adanis,  "Iliitory  of  the  Lnilcd  St.ilci,  '  Vol.  I,  pp.  10-17. 


m^K 


"^ir 


:^^^BM4 


IXDUSTRIAL   CONDinoNS 


loS 


L 


i 


Manufacturinii  was  still  alm()>t  entirely  in  the  house- 
hold staue.  Kvidenies  of  a  comiii;,'  chaise  were,  however. 
apiKirent  in  many  directions.  The  woolen  indu.-trv.  that 
had  led  the  industrial  revolution  just  then  in  pn.-ress  in 
England,  was  the  first  to  enter  upon  the  factory  sfa;,'e  on 
this  side  the  Atlantic.  Kn<,'land  was  well  aware  of  the 
advantage  which  the  newly  invented  machinery  was 
giving  her  manufacturers  in  the  markets  of  the  world,  and 
was  seeking  in  every  way  to  maintain  her  monojiolv. 
Heavy  penalties  were  directed  against  those  who  should 
seek  to  e.x[)ort  any  of  the  new  machinery,  and  several 
attempts  to  evade  these  proliibitic-s  failed.  In  17QO 
Samuel  Slater,  who  had  worked  in  the  .\rkwright  mills 
in  England,  came  to  the  United  States,  and  as  he  had 
stowed  away  the  plans  only  in  his  head,  he  was  not 
stopped  at  the  customhouse.  He  built  a  com[)lete 
factory  the  next  year  in  Pawtucket,  Rhode  Island. 

At  the  very  beginning  industrial  evolution  in  the 
United  States  showed  one  peculiarity  that  was  to  dis- 
tinguish it  from  that  of  European  countries.  It  was  un- 
hampered by  traditions  and  feudal  institutions  and  cus- 
toms, and  struck  out  boldly  in  new  and  characteristic 
p  iths.  In  England  the  \vt)ole:i  industry  had  always  been 
divided  into  several  processes,  each  cirried  (.n  under  a 
ditTerent  roof,  and  this  division  was  kept  up  even  after 
the  factory  system  was  introduced.  Carding  and  comb- 
ing was  one  industry,  spinning  another,  and  weaving. 
dyeing,  and  finishing  were  each  separated  from  all  the 
others.  Each  of  these  had  its  own  building,  owner,  in- 
dustrial organization,  purchasing  and  marketing  facilities. 
From  the  very  beginning  all  this  was  swe[)t  aside  in  the 
L  nitcu  States,  and  an  twcse  processes  v.'crc  niadc"  a  [rdti 


Io6  SOCIAL   FORCFS   I\   AMERICAX   HISTORY 


of  one  act  (jf  production  under  one  roof  and  one  manage- 
ment.' 

Iron  and  steel  were  still  produced  largely  as  they  had 
been  for  centuries.  But  the  new  "i)ud(!ling"  method 
had  just  been  introduced;  jjower  was  being  used  to 
drive  the  blowers,  .i.nd  everywhere  there  were  signs  oi  a 
coming  change.  One  of  the  great  '-household"  indus- 
tries of  Xew  Knglantl  was  the  manufacture  of  nails.  Each 
family  had  its  own  little  anvil,  forge,  and  sim{)le  tools. 
The  iron  was  distributed  at  regular  intervals,  and  the 
completed  product  purchased  by  those  who.  a  little  later, 
were  to  gather  these  workers  together  in  great  factories 
tending  giant  machines,  each  of  which  would  produce 
more  nails  than  a  whole  community  of  household 
workers. 

The  shoe  trade  was  already  concentrating  around 
Boston.  But  shoes  were  still  made  with  lapstone.  awl, 
and  waxed  end. 

Superficially  industry  was  sleeping,  as  it  had  slept  for 
centuries.  A  closer  study  revealed  the  first  movements 
that  heralded  a  new  awakeninjr. 

Fitch's  steamboat  was  making  regular  trips  up  and 
down  the  Delaware  in  i  jgo.  His  neighbors  looked  upon 
him  PS  a  half-insane  crank.  He  was  to  share  the  fate  of 
a  multitude  of  those  who  have  lightened  the  labor  of  the 
world.  He  died  in  poverty,  the  butt  of  ridicule,  while 
another  man  and  generation  reaped  fame  and  wealth 
from  his  ideas. 

The  great  industry  of  the  time  was  shipbuilding  and 
commerce.     Xew   England   ships  were   turning  watery 

'  "The  New  F:nKlancl  States,"  Vol.  I.     MonoRraph  by  S.  D.  N.  N'orth, 
iSc".v  Lngianu  Wooicn  MaiiulaLluicrft,"  p.  joi. 


INDUSTRIAL    COXniTION'S 


107 


furrows  In  every  ocean  highway  and  harbor.     Ilcr  mer- 
chants were  already  the  most  powerful  in  the  world,  and 


were  accumulating    the   capital  which 


mves 


ted 


m 


th( 


machinery  just  then  being  conceived  by  the  minds  of 
in\entors,  was  destined  during  the  next  generation  to 
change  the  whole  social  structure. 

It  was  the  germinal  period  of  capitalism.  The  begin- 
nings of  the  greatest  of  all  social  transformations  were 
appearing,  but  were  attracting  little  attention. 


CHAPTER   X 

rum:  or  coMMERcr:  and  fix.wce 

Three  divisions  of  the  ruling,'  class  united  to  form  the 
constitution  and  establish  the  new  government.     These 
were  the  merchants,  the  manufacturers,  and  the  planters. 
'I"he  first  two  at  once  formed  an  alliance  against  the  latter 
to  secure  control  of  government.     In   th.is  alliance  the 
first  dominated,  since  the  carrying  tra<le  wa>  hv  far  the 
most  highly  develoi)ed.      Its  units  of  capital  were  larger, 
its  owners  more  clearly  con-.cious  of  their  class  interests! 
and  better  equipped  to  further  those  irtcre^'s  than  the 
owners  of   the  essentials  of  any  other  industry.     In  this 
America  was  following  in   the  already  well-worn  track 
of  social  evolution.     Merchants  have  generallv  been  the 
advance  guard  of  the  capitalist  army,  gathering  the  cap- 
ital and  {)olitical  power  to  be  later  cmi)loyed  and  enjoyed 
by  the  manufacturers. 

I-vents  were  especially  favorable  for  the  American 
carrying  trade.  The  year  of  V,'ashington's  inauguration 
saw  the  fall  of  the  Bastile  and  the  beginning  of  the  French 
Revolution.  Everywhere  the  capitalist  cla.ss  was  coming 
into  power.  Xapolcon  was  to  come  upon  the  heels  of 
the  Revolution,  and  for  a  generation  western  Europe 
was  to  do  little  besides  wallow  in  its  own  blood.  Unless 
this  fact  is  kept  constantly  in  mind  it  is  impossible  to 
understand  events  on  this  side  the  Atlantic.  While  the 
great  commercKU  nations  were  ngiiting  one  anotiier  for 

1 08 


i 


Rri.K    OF   COMMKKCi;    AM)    FINANCK 


109 


tlu'  carrying  trade  of  the  world  America  ran  away  with 
the  bone  over  which  they  were  (juarrelinf;. 

The  man  who  best  incarnated  the  interests  and  ideas 
of  the  merchants  and  manufacturers  of  this  lime  was 
Alexander  Hamilton  of  New  York.  So  true  is  this  that 
the  history  of  the  t'lrst  twelve  years  after  the  adoption 
of  the  ct)nstitution  has  been  very  riglitfully  designated 
as  the  "  Ilamiltoiiian  period." 

The  constitution  had  been  formulated  and  foisted  upon 
the  jieople  largely  by  stealth  and  decei)tion,  aided  by  ;i 
closely  restricted  sutTrage.  Even  this  would  not  have 
been  possible  without  tlie  support  of  the  i)lantation  owners 
of  the  South.  The  Southern  j)lanter.  however,  belonged 
to  a  social  stage  that  was  already  of  tiie  past.  He  was 
to  make  some  desperate  efforts  to  control  the  .American 
government,  was  to  succeed  for  a  time,  and  to  go  down 
hnally  only  after  the  bloodiest  war  of  the  century.  At 
this  moment  his  economic  power  appeared  to  be  u{)on  the 
wane.  The  cotton  gin  had  not  yet  produced  its  revolu- 
tion, and  tobacco  cultivation  had  passed  its  zenit'.i.  The 
manufactu zing  class,  on  the  contrary,  was  just  beginning 
to  feel  its  strength,  and  it  was  with  this  class,  its  own 
first-born,  that  the  merchant  class  joined  hand>.  In  this 
alliance  we  inrn\  tlie  key  to  the  legislation  of  the  pt.Tiod. 

The  first  bill  introduced  into  the  new  ("ongress  was  a 
tariff  bill.  Its  protective  features  would  be  considered 
very  mild  to-day.  but  the  debate  shows  that  it  was  con- 
sidered a  protecti\e  measure.  This  discussion  brought 
out  all  the  contending  interests,  as  every  such  bill  since 
has  done.  Pennsylvania  wanted  a  taritl  on  nK>las-es, 
rum.  and  steel.  Massachusetts  opposed  the  first  and 
was  doubtful  of  the  s.-cond,  because  of  the  pari  ihey 


no 


SOCIAF.    FORCF.S    I\    AMKRICAN    HISTORY 


played  in  her  comnitrce.  but  was  agreed  u[)<)n  the  hitter. 
The  South  opposed  a  tax  on  the  hist  two  and  favored 
taxinj^  the  first.  The  West,  consi.-ling  of  Kentueky 
and  Tennessee,  both  <jf  whom  were  ihimorin^  for  adniis- 
sion  to  tlie  Union,  was  cajoled  into  the  protection  camp 
by  a  tariff  on  hemp  to  offset  their  j)rotests  a<;ain>t  the 
ta.x  on  salt,  levied  at  the  behest  of  the  coast  merchants 
and  fishers,  and  bearing  heavily  on  the  back  country 
cattle  raisers. 

Tin's  tariff  had  hardly  been  enacted  into  law  before 
Hamilton  came  forward  with  the  series  oi  i)r()po>al^  whose 
comprehensiveness  and  unity  of  j)ur])ose  and  far-sighted 
outlook  stamp  him  as  one  of  the  greatest  exponents  of 
rising  class  interests,  and  therefore  one  of  the  greatest  of 
what  the  world  calls  statesmen  that  the  century  has 
produced. 

These  measures  were  designed  to  carry  still  farther  the 
plot  which  began  with  the  constitution.  They  proposed 
an  interpretation  of  that  document  to  which  but  a  small 
minority  of  the  small  body  who  f(^rnied  it  would  have 
agreed.  It  had  been  difhcult  enough  to  secure  its  adop- 
tion when  it  was  supposed  to  leave  a  large  measure  of 
autonomy  to  the  states.  Xow  Hamilton  proposed  and 
carried  through  a  program  of  legislation  that  well-nigh 
destroyed  this  autonomy. 

Commerce  demands  a  strong  central  government 
ca])able  of  extending  its  influence  wherever  ships  sail  and 
goods  are  sold.  To  secure  such  a  government  having 
its  own  sources  of  income,  exercising  direct  control  over 
the  citizen,  and  tied  tightly  to  the  possessi)rs  of  financial 
power,  was  Hamilton's  object. 

The  three  most  important  measures  which  went  to  the 


RILI.   OF   COMMI.KCT.   AND    I  INANC  T. 


I  I  I 


buildinp  up  of  this  structure  wore:  first,  the  funding'  of 
tlu-  national  and  Mate  debt,  with  the  a^.umption  of  the 
latter  bv  the  national  government;  second,  the  estab- 
h.hment  of  a  national  bank;  third,  the  introduction  of 
a  protective  tariff  and  exi  i>e  tax. 

Nothing  is  so  impressive  to  the  bourgeois  mind  as 
propcTlv  relatic.n-^  on  a  large  >eale.  A  g..vernment  with 
a  iireat  national  debt,  an  interest  in  a  bank,  and  an  in- 
dependent source  of   revenue  fulfilled  all   ideals  in  this 

respect. 

The  national  debt,  domestic  and  foreign,  which  was 
inherited  bv  the  new  government  from  the  ol<l  Confeil- 
eration  amounted  to  ab<.ut  S42.ooo.ooo.  Hamill..n 
proposed  that  this  should  be  increase.l  by  the  nation 
assuming  the  debts  incurred  by  the  stater,  during 
tlic  Revolution  and  still  unpaid,  amounting  to  over 
.?  ^0.000.000.  This  would  give  a  national  debt  of  nearly 
$75,000,000.  Although  there  are  many  individuals  at 
the  present  time  who  could  undertake  the  payment  of 
such  a  debt,  it  appeared  of  mammoth  proportions  to  the 

men  of  1790- 

The  certificates  of  indebtedness  had  been  steadily  de- 
preciating during  the  Confederation.  They  were  now 
almost  worthless.  They  were  held  largely  by  specula- 
tors who  had  bought  them  for  but  a  few  cents  on  the 
dollar.  These  speculators  at  once  gave  their  adherence 
to  the  proposal  to  make  the  national  government  re- 
sponsible. 

The  Southern  states  were  especially  ojiposed  to  this 
move  to  strengthen  the  national  government  at  the  ex- 
pense of  the  states.  The  plantation  interests  \yere  much 
more  closely  united  to  the  slates  and  had  little  iued  of 


1 1 


."(JCIAL    FOkCKb    IN    A.MI.klCAN    HISTORY 


a  stronj^  central  fjovern merit.  Moreover  several  of  the 
Soutlu-rn  states  had  already  paid  their  debts,  and  this 
new  pn)|K)saI  would  simply  mian  that  they  would  he 
required  to  as>ist  in  hearing;  the  burdens  of  oilier  slates.' 

The  South  was  very  anxious  that  the  national  ia[)ital 
should  be  lo(aUil  in  their  section.  For  lliis  Hamilton 
and  thosi-  he  reiirexi'.lcd  cared  little  or  noliiini,'.  They 
wiTc  interested  in  more  substantial  thin<,'s.  So  Hamilton 
arranj,'cd  a  bar^,Min  with  JelTerson.  H\  its  terms  enough 
votes  were  to  bi-  ^iven  by  Hamilton  to  secure  the  location 
of  the  capital  on  the  Potomac  on  condition  that  JelTerson 
deliver<'d  sulVu  ient  Southern  votes  to  carry  the  measure, 
providing  for  the  assumption  of  state  debts.  After  it 
was  all  over.  Jefferson  made  a  loud  complaint  about 
gettinj;  the  worst  of  the  bargain,  seeming  to  forget  that 
bargains  are  made  with  just  that  object  in  view. 

HamiIto.:'s  sujiporters  insisted  that  the  certificates  of 
indebtedness  should  be  paid  in  full,  and  this  without 
regard  to  the  amounts  paid  for  such  certitkates  by  the 
present  holders.  I-'rom  the  point  of  view  of  expediency 
(which  is  much  the  same  as  statesmanship)  this  was  un- 
doubtedly correct.  But  when  this  action  was  defended 
on  ethical  grounds,  with  high-sounding  protestations  of 

'  J.S.  Bassctt,  "The  Federalist  System,"  pu:  " The  states  wlii^li  had 
the  lari;est  unpaid  de!>ts  were  naturally  the  m<»t  anxious  fur  I'liiiilin;;.  Of 
these  Mass-achusetK.  (Dnnediiut.  and  South  Carolina  were  mo-t  notable. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  states  havinj:  the  small  dehts  were  .i>;ain-t  the 
measure,  and  anion«  them  was  VirL;inia,  who  had  i)aid  much  of  iier 
Revolutionary  deht  through  the  sale  of  western  lands.  .  .  .  Those 
persons,  and  there  were  many,  who  faxured  a  strong  central  ^o\crnmcnt 
also  declared  for  ;i~sun-|)tion.  In  the  wake  of  \"irt:inia  followed  the  states 
south  of  her,  ^ave  South  Carolina,  while  \ew  Ijii^land  w.is  for  as>ump- 
tion.  The  middle  st.ites  di\  ided.  the  conmiercial  parts  going  for,  and  the 
agricultural  parts  against,  the  measure." 


KLLi:    OV   COMMlkCK   AM)    I  INANCK 


"3 


honesty,  one  is  a|)t  to  he  reminded  of  .mother  deht  that 
was  bei'ij;  rejjudiated  at  the  very  moment  siii  h  strenuous 
efforts  were  hein^  made  to  p.iy  this  one.  This  was  the 
(Kht  created  by  forcing;  the  (  ntinental  paper  money 
upon  farmers  in  payment  (  'f  i  for  their  p-oduce,  upon 
laborers  as  wages  for  their  toil,  upon  soMiers  in  exchange 
fur  their  lives  and  their  sufferings.  1  lu>e  hills  had  lu-i-i 
forced  upon  such  persons  by  all  the  power  of  livil,  crim- 
inal, and  military  law.  backed  up  by  every  form  of  social 
ostracism,  mob  violenc.  and  public  pressure  that  could 
be  de\  ised. 

Those  to  whom  it  w:is  owed  had  given,  not  c)f  thei*- 
abundance  like  the  holders  of  the  certificates  of  indebted- 
ness, but  of  their  poverty.  This  debt  amounted  to  over 
Sioo.cxxD.ooo.  It  was  absolutely  repudiated  by  the  gov- 
ernment of  Hamilton.  That  repudiation,  and  cunsecjuent 
loss  by  the  producing  class,  was  one  of  the  causes  of  the 
terrible  poverty  that  prevailed.  It  is  at  least  possible 
that  some  of  the  "prosperity"  that  followed  the  enact- 
ment of  Hamilton's  measures  '.v..s  due  to  the  fact  that  the 
workers  were  permitted  to  produce  for  use  and  exchange 
instead  of  for  confiscation  thro'^<:h  ;i  uscl-..„  currencv.' 


'  JefTerson  has  thus  described  tlie  i)ri)cc'ss  of  funding  and  :is.sum[)tiiin  : 
"  After  the  c:;|)cdient  of  [)a|)er  mi)ne\-  liad  exh.iusted  itxlf,  lertilicates 
of  dclit  were  Hi\en  to  the  in'lividu.d  ireditors,  with  assiir.irne  of  pa>nienl 
us  soon  as  the  United  States  shovild  he  alile.  Hut  the  ili.^tre^ses  of  tlie-^e 
[leople  often  ohh^ed  them  to  part  with  these  for  the  half,  the  fifth,  ;ind 
e\en  a  tenth  of  their  \ahie ;  and  >;ieiuhitors  had  nuide  a  trade  of  lo/en- 
int;  them  from  their  holders,  by  the  most  fraudulent  praiticc-,  and  per- 
suasion that  they  would  never  be  paid.  In  the  bill  for  funding;  and  pay- 
in;^  lhes<'  Hamilton  made  no  diiTerenie  between  the  original  ho.der-.  and 
the  fraudulent  purchasers  of  thi^  paper.  ( ireat  and  just  repu^nani  e  aroic 
at  puttinf;  these  two  classes  of  creditors  on  the  same  footini;,  and  ^reat 
cveiUous  were  used  lo  pa>    liie  ionuei   Uie  luii  vaiac,  aiici  lu  Uic  iallcl 


114 


SOCIAL    Ft)k(  1,.^    I\    AMKklC.W    HISTORY 


'riic  class  of  bankers  was  ju^t  appearing  There  were 
onlv  four  banks  in  the  entire  country.  To  su])ply  needed 
banking  faeiHties  and  lie  this  [lowerful  interest  to  the 
national  governinent,  Hamilton  })roposed  a  naiional 
!)ank.  He  united  this  proposal  to  his  debt  plan  in  a  most 
skillful  manner.  The  bank  was  to  have  a  capital  of 
Sio.ooo.ooo.  The  national  government  took  S2.000.000 
of  this,  receiving  in  return  a  loan  oi  the  same  amount. 

The  clever  feature  of  the  organization  was  that  the 
certificates  of  debt  were  to  be  accepted  for  75  per  cent  of 
the  value  of  any  number  of  shares  of  stock.  .\s  the  bank 
was  assured  of  a  monopoly  for  ten  years,  its  stock,  and 
therefore  the  certificates  of  debt,  were  above  par  almost 
froii  the  beginning.  Vet  it  was  noticed  that  although 
the  shares  were  largely  oversubscribed,  nearly  all  the  pur- 
chasers lived  north  of  the  Potomac. 

The  vote  in  Congress  for  its  establishment  was  a  direct 
rellection  of  the  possession  of  the  shares.     The  measure 

thf  i.ritc  only  which  lie  luid  .Kiid  with  intercut.  Bui  this  would  have 
I)rL'\cuti'(i  tlir  -.imu  which  was  to  he  [)la\-cil,  and  for  whiih  the  minds  of 
Rrcfdy  nicmhurs  were  already  tutored  and  prepared.  When  the  trial 
of  slrenulh  on  these  several  elTorts  had  indiealed  the  form  in  which  the 
bill  would  iMially  pass,  this  heing  known  within  doors  s<)oner  than  without 
and  esi)e.  i.illy  than  to  those  who  were  in  disl.inl  parts  of  the  I'nion,  t!  • 
hasc  seramhle  hei^.m.  C'ourier.s  and  relay  horses  by  land,  and  swift 
sailint;  pilot  boats  by  sea,  were  flying  in  all  direetioni,  .  .  .  and  this 
paper  was  l)oui,'ht  up  at  5/  and  even  as  low  as  :/  in  the  pound,  before 
the  iioldcr  knew  th,U  (■on;,'ress  iiad  alread\- pro\  ided  for  its  redemption 
at  |)ar.  Immense  sums  were  thus  t'dehed  from  the  jxMir  and  i^inorant,  and 
fortunes  a<  i  unuilated  by  iho.-e  who  had  been  poor  enouf^h  before.  Men 
thus  eiirii!ie(l  by  the  dr\terity  of  a  le.ider  woul<i  follow  of  course  the 
iliicf  who  v,,i,  leadin.::  tliem  to  fortune,  and  become  the  zealous  instru- 
ments of  all  hi-  eiiterpri.-e>."  This  |),issu;e  has  been  criticized  by  the 
defenders  of  Ilamilion  w!io  ha\e  claimed  that  it  accused  Hamilton  of 
(iishone-tv.  Tlial  it  cloes  not  do  this  is  pl.iin  to  any  unbiased  reader, 
and  there  is  every  reason  to  belie\  e  that  it  describe^  actual  facts. 


RULE   OF   COMMHRCi:   AM)    I  I.NANCi: 


1 1 


w;is  carried  by  iIil-  soHil  \nW  of  llif  Xortlirrii  co'nmcrrial 
and  manufacluriiii;  >latis  a,uaiii>l  lla-  >"li(l  (ippo-^ilion 'il 
llic  plaiUaliiiii  >talr-.  ot"  the  Soulh. 

riic  a^suniptiiui  and  futidin^  ol"  llif  diht  l)\-  tin-  national 
^'lAcrnmcnl  trralcd  a  hnnillinldiim,  iiilrrrslnti  i\i-ii^ 
tlass  who  naturally  \V()r.-hii)cd  tlicir  ircal'ir.  Il  alx) 
made  ncccs^a^y  a  >lcad>'  naliunal  inLMiiic.  It'  tlvj  nalional 
f:;i)vc'rnmcnt  was  to  pay  money  rt\t,Hilarly  and  directly  to 
one  class  of  tili/ens.  il  must  l)e  able  to  take  it  directly 
and  rej,Hilarl>-  from  another  class. 

The  next  step  in  Hamilton's  program  included  a  pro- 
tective tariff  and  an  excise  tax.  His  famous  "Report 
on  .Manufactures."'  >ubmitled  in  adx'ocacy  of  a  protective 
tariff,  is  admittedl\-  the  ablest  document  produced  by 
more  than  a  century  of  tariff  discussion.  There  is  one 
essential  point  in  which  his  argument  differs  from  that 
offered  by  hi,t;h  lariif  advocates  of  the  i)resent  time. 
Hamilton  was  not  troubled  with  universal  suffra<^e.  It 
was  not  necessary  for  him  to  placate  the  "  hd)or  vote." 
He  spoke  only  from  the  manufacturers'  point  of  view. 
Therefore  he  t^ave  as  one  of  the  reasons  for  a  tariff  the 
hi.Ljh  wa^'es  jxiid  in  this  country,  and  jiroceeded  upon  the 
basis  that  such  wa^^'es  were  an  undesirable  handicaj)  which 
would  be  overcome  as  the  country  grew  older. 

On  the  (juestion  of  child  labor  also  he  would  scarcely 
use  the  langua.^e  a])out  to  be  quoted  if  he  were  spokesman 
for  the  [)resent  high  tarilT.     He  says:  — 

"It  is  worthy  of  particular  remark  that,  in  penoral, 
women  and  children  are  rendered  more  useful,  and  the 
latter  more  early  useful,  by  manufacturins,'  establish- 
ments, than  they  would  otherwise  be.  Of  the  num- 
ber of  persons  employed  in  the  cotton  manufactories  of 


no 


SOCIAL    FOKCKS    I.N    A.MLRICAN"    lIISTOkV 


(irtat  Britain  it  is  computed  that  four  sevenths  are  women 
and  children,  of  whom  the  greater  proportion  are  children 
and  man_\-  of  a  tender  age." 

The  ])rotecti\e  tarift,  a,L,'ain,  like  the  bank  and  the 
national  debt,  created  a  class  (the  manufacturers)  pecul- 
iarly dei)endent  U|)on  the  national  goxernment.  and  who 
Kiuld  be  reckoned  upon  to  rally  to  its  su[jport  and  to 
demand  further  fa\-ors  in  return  for  th;it  .support. 

Tiie  rapid  growth  of  manufactures  was  hindered  by 
the  unwillingness  of  men  to  work  for  wages  when  a  whole 
great  (onlinent  of  untrodden  fertile  land  lay  at  the  west- 
ern doors  of  >o(  iety  ready  to  yield  up  it>  bountx"  to  whom- 
e\er  could  get  upon  it  and  use  his  labor.  Henjamin 
I'ranklin  had  seen  this  fact  and  had  expressed  an  opinion 
that  while  free  land  existed,  manufacturing  wo'jld  be  im- 
])o>>ib!e  because  no  one  would  work  for  wages. 

This  land  was  now  in  the  hands  of  the  national  govern- 
ment, and  we  tint!  this  taking  steps  to  limit  settlement 
and  thereby  create  a  body  of  w;'  cworkers.  Acting  upon 
the  advice  of  Hamilton,  it  was  provided  that  no  land 
should  be  sold  from  the  public  domain  exce|)t  in  plots  of 
not  less  than  nine  square  miles.  To  still  further  debar 
the  small  farmer  the  price  of  even  these  great  tracts  was 
t'lxed  at  a  minimum  of  two  dollars  an  acre.  But  lest  the 
wtTk  of  the  land  speculators  should  be  interfered  with, 
long  cp  dit  was  extended  to  those  who  could  give  satis- 
tactorv  .securitv.' 


'  1"l;o  Raliln'iKi,"  \r;-.,'ir.in  '.'(immiTci.il  Policy,"  p.  i  7(1  c/ ,V('^.,  explains 
tlu'  Working;  of  llii-  |><)lic  \  in  tkUiil  aiid  adds:  "  Tluis  at  an  fjwih  when 
it  was  not  yet  [xissihic  to  initiate  a  protei  live  [x)lioy,  whieh  would  only 
ha\i-  made  for  the  interest  of  too  small  a  i!,i>s  ,)f  capitalists.  ;-.  land  |K)I- 
ic\'  w.is  nevertheless  introduced,  whii  h  I'lviiri-!  mJ.I  tjicj  interests  of  the 
cijiitulists,   whether   manufacturcr.s  —  1j\-   excluding;   lahorers   from   the 


RULE  OF   COMMKRCi:   AND    FINAXCK 


117 


I 


The  modcratdy  protective  tariff  and  the  land  policy 
combined  with  most  intense  public  sentiment  in  favor 
of  domestic  products,  amounting  to  a  boycott  on  foreign 
products  where  the  domestic  was  attainable,  led  to  a 
rapid  development  of  manufactures. 

The  excise  tax  filled  another  role  in  the  working  out  of 
Hamilton's  plan.  It  had  been  sui)iH)sed  that  the  national 
government  would  have  no  direct  connection  with  in- 
dividuals, but  would  reach  them  only  through  the  state 
governments.  It  was  with  this  understanding  that  the 
constitution  had  been  finally  adopted.  This  did  not  suit 
Hamilton's  plans,  nor  the  interests  of  those  he  represented. 
He  wished  to  bring  the  central  g(nernment  into  direct 
contact  with  the  citizens  in  their  homes.  This  was  the 
principal  purpose  of  the  tax  upon  the  production  of 
whisk}-. 

Such  a  tax  was  peculiarly  fitted  to  accomplish  the  pur- 
pose in  view.  It  was  certain  to  bring  about  a  conflict 
with  a  class  already  hostile  to  the  central  government,  and 
this  a  class  without  influence  in  determining  legislation. 
Corn  was  the  principal  crop  on  the  frontier.  The  range 
within  which  it  can  be  marketed  in  its  original  form  and 
with  crude  methods  of  transportation  is  extremely  limited. 
It  can.  however,  be  changed  into  two  forms  that  admit 
of  extensive  and  economical  transportation,  —  pork  and 
whisky.  The  second  of  these  affords  by  far  the  greater 
profits.  It  is  therefore  an  invariable  rule  of  historical 
interpretation  that  a  settlement  within  the  corn  belt 
with  imperfect  transportation  facilities  will  alwavs  have 


soil  and  com})t'llinK  ihem  to  work  for  wages  —  or  agriculturists,  by  Icav- 

••••      1"  "    '"    -jH.  Miitirf.     u::'j{;:t.an.irif43    utl    a    laf^C    il-a:L'    c.\;  ;u 

sivxly.    See  also  Schnukr,  "  Hisiory  of  Unitid  States,"  Vol.  I,  pp.  215-216. 


riS 


SOCIAL  i-DkCKS  IN   \.mi;kic.\.\  history 


•'n.oon.-hiiK'  >tills."     This  rule  has  held  ^ood  for  moro 
than      (fiUury.  and  dear  across  the  continent,  witho- 
regard  to  the  morality  or  general   la\v-abidin<^  characti. . 
of  the  population. 

The  frontier>nien  of  Pennsylvania  could  sec  no  reason 
why  they  should  not  be  permitted  to  market  their  corn 
as  a  L'e\eraj^e  unhindered  by  a  rexenue  lax.  Perhaps 
some  of  them  had  heard  of  the  j)atriolic  smugglers  of 
j)re-l\t\(iluti()nary  days,  or  thought  that  ''taxation 
with.out  representation"  was  still  a  crime,  and,  >ince  they 
were  nearly  all  disfranchised  by  pro[)erty  qualitkalions, 
the>'  attempted  to  resist  the  law. 

This  gave  Hamilton  the  opportunit>-  for  which  he  had 
been  waiting,  .\lthough  the  '■\Vhi>ky  Rebellion,"  as 
the  few  i.solated  attacks  uj^on  the  revenue  otl'icers  were 
called,  was  of  insignificant  j)roporti()ns,  Hamilton  suc- 
ceeded in  inducing  Washington  ti)  call  upon  the  troops 
from  the  neighboring  states,  until  an  army  of  15,000  was 
assembli'd  and  marched  through  the  riotous  localities. 
This  overwhelming  show  of  force  established  a  precedent 
for  direct  interference  by  the  national  gvAcrnment  with 
the  internal  affairs  of  a  state,  and  gave  eviilence  of  the 
jiossession  of  sutTicient  power  to  enforce  the  decrees  of 
the  central  government.' 

This  completed  the  revolution  begun  when  that  con- 
ference was  called  at  .\nnapolis.  The  whole  character 
of  governmental  institutions  had  been  transformed.     The 

'  Dcwcy,  "  t'in.iin  ial  History  nf  the  I'niltil  Stales,"  p.  106:  "The 
i,i\  w.ts  reuank'il  with  hostility.  i)arti' ii!arl\-  in  the  a^^rieullural  reL;ions 
i<\  tlie  Middle  and  Soutl-ern  States.  It  was  asserted  that  the  eommereial 
.1110  im|Mirtin;;  interests  of  New  Knglar.d  disliked  the  taritT,  but  looked 
v.ith  jjre.it  tjnii  la-.eny  upon  an  ex-.  :;e  upon  an  industry  in  v.hich  they 
were  not  ^reatlv  concerned." 


RULI-:  OF  commi:rck  and  financi: 


119 


principles  of  ihe  Declaration  of  Independence  had  lonj^ 
a^o  been  cast  asidi-.  The  spirit  of  democracy  whicli  was 
roused  to  win  that  strujij,de  had  been  crushed,  and  social 
control  had  been  vested  in  the  class  whose  lineal  descend- 
ants have  held  it  until  the  present  time.  That  sucl) 
action  was  essential  if  a  j^reat  and  powerful  nation  was 
to  arise  upon  this  continent,  few  will  deny. 

Without  a  strong,  central  government,  controlled  by 
the  commercial  and  manufacturing  class  at  this  time,  it 
would  have  been  impossible  to  have  laid  the  foundatit)n 
for  the  great  development  of  subsequent  years. 


I 
I 


i 


CHAPTER  XI 


RULE  OF  PLANTATION  AND  FRONTIER 


Commerce  had  progressed  with  sevcn-lcapuc  strides 
under  Hamilton's  regime.  Aided  by  the  upheaval  in 
JOurope.  American  foreign  trade  grew  from  843,000,000  in 
lygi  to  $204,000,000  in  1801.'  Nevertheless,  the  mer- 
chant were  driven  from  innver.  There  were  many 
reasons  for  this,  not  all  of  them  directly  due  to  the  clash 
of  immediate  industrial  interests. 

The  Federalists  seem  to  have  become  drunk  with 
power.  They  took  the  unpopular  side  in  the  French 
Revolution,  and  sought  to  sup[)ress  all  e.\i)ressions  of 
sympathy  with  the  Revolutionists.  The  better  to  do 
this  they  passed  the  "Alien  and  Sedition  Laws,"  vesting 
extraordinary  powers  in  the  President  for  the  punish- 
ment of  those  who  criticized  the  government,  and  giving 
him  the  power  summarily  to  deport  foreigners.  There 
was  much  opposition  to  this  growing  centralization  of 
autocratic  power.  This  brought  support  to  other  divi- 
sions of  the  budding  capitalist  class  rather  than  to  the 
merchants. 

The  principal  industrial  divisions  of  the  population 
struggling  for  the  control  of  government  were  the  small 
farmers,  the  frontiersmen,  the  manufacturers,  the  mer- 
chants, and  the  Southern  plantation  owners.  It  will  be 
at  once  noted  that  these  overlap  in  the  actual  processes 

'  William  C.  Wobslor,  "Cicner.-il  History  of  Commerce,"  p.  352. 

120 


JT-V.;- 


Rn.K   OF    I'l.ANT.Vno.X    AM»    IRONTII.R 


i:i 


of  industry.  This  was  slill  more  true  of  tlu'ir  political 
interests.  Conseciueiuly  any  exai  I  analysis  of  the  play 
of  industrial  forces  as  relleeled  in  [xjlitieal  events  i>  al- 
most impossibl''. 

Agriculture  in  the  sense  of  small,  diversified  farmint^ 
was  still  bv  far  the  most  common  industry.  It  was  much 
more  '" diversified"  than  is  a(lvi>ed  to-day  bv  even  the 
most  enthusiastic  opponents  of  "one-crop"  farmin'?. 
The  compilers  of  the  census  of  iSio  tell  us  that  they  have 
e.xcluded  many  "doubtful  articles"  from  the  manufac- 
turing schedules,  which 

"...  from  their  very  nature  were  nearly  allied  to  agricul- 
ture, including  cotton  pressing,  flour  and  meal,  grain  and 
sawmills,  barrels  for  packing,  malt,  pot  and  pearl  ashes, 
mai)le  and  cane  sugar,  molasses,  rosin,  [)itch,  slates, 
bricks,  tiles,  saltpeter,  indigo,  red  and  yellow  ochre, 
hemp  and  hemp  mills,  fisheries,  wine,  ground  plaster, 
etc..  all  together  estimated  at  S25.85o.705,  making  the 
aggregate  value  of  manufactures  of  every  description  in 
the  United  States  in  1810  equal  to  8108.61,^484." 

Here  we  are  at  the  very  birth  of  the  family  of  modern 
industries  from  the  great  mother  industry  of  agriculture. 
The  whole  process  of  industrial  evolution  consists  of  a 
gradual  separation  of  the  production  of  r-ore  and  more 
"doubtful  articles"  from  farming. 

Many  children  of  agriculture  were  just  preparing  to 
leave  the  farm  at  this  time  and  to  take  up  their  abode  in 
factories.  The  making  of  cloth  was  just  i)assing  from 
the  "household"  stage,  where  production  is  in  the  family 
and  for  the  family,  to  the  "domestic"  stage,  where,  while 
production  still  goes  on  in  the  home,  the  product  seeks 
an  outside  market. 


122  S(H|\I,    F(lR(i:S    I\-     \M|,RI(\\     Ill-Ii.'KV 


I  111-  (lunictic  -t;ii:c.  of  -.)  mudi  iniportaiuc  in  luiro- 
ix.in  inilu>lri;il   lii.-tory.  \v;i>  to  \,v  hul  ,i  >hort  tarryini,' 
pla.f  for  Aiiicriraii  iii(lu>try  oii  it-  r..a<!  to  the  failory, 
I  lie  two  >ta^cs  ucrc  o\ rrla[)i)inL:  at  tlii-  tinu-.     Tlii-  i^Tcal 
hulk  of  niaiiuiadurini,'  wa-  >till  in  tlu-  lioii-i'liold  >tam". 
All  important  portion  had  na<  lu^d  tlu-  poinl  of  doint>tir 
produdioii    for    market.      Then    we    learn    tlial    '•  fifteen 
cotton  mills  were  erei  te<l  in  Xi^w  Knizlaiul  lufore  the  yi'ar 
iSoS.  working  at  that  time  almo-t  Sooo  >pind!es.  ami  pro- 
ducing ahout  soo.ooo  i)ounds  of  yarn  a  \-ear.      Returns 
had  heen  rcnviwd  of  Sj  mill-,  iTeeted  at   the  end  of  the 
year   iSo().  Oj  of  whieh  were  in  operation,  and  worked 
31.000  spindK',-..'"  ' 

By  iSij  a  woolen  mill  in  Middlelown.  Connecticut,  was 
bein<,'  run  by  one  of  ()li\,r  llvan-,'  enLrine-.  in\ente<l, 
(k'>i,-ned.  eon^tr  ,  ted.  and  ojuTated  in  the  United  Stalcs.' 
Tlie  relative  importance  of  the  different  stap-s  of  indus- 
trial production  of  doth  is  shown  by  the  repi.rt  of  the 
census  ot  iSio  that  2\.2u.2(>2  yards  of  linen.  16.581.290 
of  cotton,  and  0,528.200  of  woolen  <ioods  wire  made  in 
families,  out  of  a  total  production  of  about  75.000.000 
yards.  Note  that  at  this  period  linen  leads,  with  cotton 
and  woolen  following'.  Soon  cotton  will  press  to  the 
front  and  linen  be  found  (lraj,'gin>,'  far  in  the  rear. 

The  manufacturinir  interests  were  still  imlivi.lualistic, 
or  merged  with  a.uriculturc.  The  tarit'f  had  aided  them, 
but  they  were  not  sufTiciently  numerous,  coherent,  nor 
energetic  to  become  a  i)olitical  factor."" 

'i.iandrr    iiishop,    "Hisiury   uf   AmrruAn    Manufactures,"   Vol     II 
p.   K'O.  ' 

-   .V;V(\'  Rf;i\l,r.  I'l-h.  i,  i,Si:,  p.  406. 

'•        •■:::•-•:••.:::   Jan.:    I.  iiutr.  >\i.  r.-K  .-,  in  liic  .\  ui(.-ii-flll  h 

Century,"  p.   uj;    ••()nc  cannot    be  surpri-cd    tlial  while    the    foreign 


KUI.i:   OF   IM..\\T,\rio\    AM)    IkoMllR 


In  the  cI()■^iIlL'  \i.'ar  of  Wa^hiimton's  a(lniini>tratinii 
an  (.•j)ot-h-makin,i,'  iiui'iition  had  api)rarf(i  tliat  wrought 
a  revolution  throu^'hout  a  broail  >cclioii  of  tla-  lounlrv. 
This  was  the  cotton  -rin  of  i;!i  Whitnr\-.  !'his  inwn- 
lioii  was  the  last  link  that  niadr  pos^iljle  i!u'  fat  tory 
system  in  the  cloth  industry.  It  furnished  the  i  heai) 
cotton  that  laid  the  foundation  of  tlie  factory  >y>tein  of 
F.n^land  and  tiie  world.  It  increa>ed  the  production 
of  cotton  in  the  United  Stales  one  hundred  I'old  in  the 
seven  years  following;  its  a[)pearance. 

Hy  making  prolitahlc  the  cultivation  of  the  short- 
t'lhered  upland  cotton  j)lant  it  released  chattel  slavery  and 
the  plantation  system  from  the  cont'ines  of  the  tide-water 
rej,Mon,  and  sent  them  on  their  career  of  corujue^t  along 
the  foothills  of  the  Alleghenies  to  Mississippi,  Louisiana, 
and  Texas.  It  wiped  out,  almost  in  a  day,  the  gh'mmering 
sentiment  for  abolition  which  a  constantly  falling  price 
of  slaves  had  aroused  in  the  breasts  of  Washington, 
Jefferson,  Madison,  and  other  Virginia  tobacco  growers. 
It  created  a  new  industrial,  and  therefore  a  new  political, 
power,  —  the  slave-owning  cotton  planter,  who  was  soim 
to  grasp  at  national  domination,  to  secure  it  after  a  short 
division  of  power  with  allied  forces,  and  then  to  rule  su- 

Iradc  was  Rrowin^  rapidly  and  while  aKricultiirc  was  flourishini:  iindrr 
ihc  double  stimulus  of  a  rapidly  imrca-iiiK  and  of  a  profiiahlf  forcicn 
vent  .  .  .  liitle  attention  should  he  paid  to  the  introduction  of  nianu 
facturcs.  There  was  am[>le  cm[)loymenl  for  all  disposable  capital  in 
the  iratTic  which  pave  such  larpe  returns;  there  was  no  surplus  labor 
to  be  drawn  into  new  industrial  enterjiri^rs.  (tccupation  couM  be  found 
for  esery  man  with  a  meihani(al  turn  in  buildinp  ships,  in  buiMinp  and 
furnishinp  the  new  dwellings  and  shops  required  by  [xipulalion  and  trade, 
in  blacksmithinp,  shoemakint;  and  other  trades  connecteii  with  the 
siiel'er,  HK'd  unci  clothing  of  the  peoi)le.  "  See  also  succeedm^;  papes 
to  p.  I J7. 


^24 


SOCIAL   lOHCI.S    I\   .\Mi;Ki(\\    Hi-^roKV 


prcnic  lor  niDrc  than  ;i  generation  and  to  he  o\erthro\vn 
only  when  the  \va;;i'  hu_\  inj,'  lapitali^t  -lioiiM  wre-^l  tlie 
s(e|)ter  of  |)ower  by  four  year>  of  terrible  ci\il  war. 

'I'his  new  and  vigorous  in(lu>trial  intere>t.  ])ul>in.i;  with 
power,  present  and  potential,  (ontribuled  stroiiLriy  to 
the  (ixerthrow  of  H.irniltonian  I'"ederali>ni  and  the  in- 
stallation of  Jeffersonian  indi\i(lualism,  although,  as  we 
shall  see.  the  eontra.^l  was  not  so  sharp  as  is  sometimes 
thou^'ht. 

It  was  not  the  old  planters  of  the  seaboard  that  placed 
Jefferson  in  the  presidential  chair.  On  the  contrary, 
these  were  more  f,'enerally  Federalist  in  thiir  sympathies. 
They  were  united  by  many  ties  of  the  past,  if  not  of  the 
present,  with  the  Xew  Fn^dand  merchants.' 

I3ut  the  new  upland  cotton  raisers  were  making  com- 
mon cause  with  the  back  country  farmers  anu'd  whom 
they  were  li\in<,'.  Witli  tliese  were  allied  the  great  body 
of  frontiersmen  who  had  been  pouring  through  (\nnber- 
land  Gap,  down  the  Ohio,  and  out  along  the  (ienesee 
River  in  New  \'ork.  These  men  were  always  separatist, 
individualistic,  and  JelTerson's  pliilosophy  appealed  to 
t'H'm.  Besides  they  had  learned  of  the  opposition  of 
isolated  Xew  England  to  Western  expansion  and  the 
Western  country,  and  this  antagonism  had  not  lost  any- 
thing in  the  telling  as  it  traveled  to  the  West,  and  it  was 
most  cordially  returned  with  ample  interest. 

Jay's  treaty  with  England  in  1794  had  not  provided 
for  the  navigation  of  the  Mississippi  and  had  almost 
raised  a  rebellion  in  the  West  as  a  consequence.  The 
Southern  c(>tton  planters  were  also  apt  to  remember  that 
John  Jay  had  known  so  little  of  that  industrv  that  he  had 

'  Bassot,  "The  Federalist  System,"  pp.  45,  46. 


RII.F     (>I     ri.\\r\TIO\    AM)    IROXTIIR 


I  :■ 


permitted  tlic  im  lu-ion  <if  .\n  .irtiiK-  l"')rl)iM(lin,L;  the  i-x- 
port  of  (dtton  in  Aiiierie.in  >hip.>.  I)ei;ui>e  lie  (li'i  nut  know 
that  lotton  \va-»  an  American  irop. 

These  new  t'onc^,  the  hack  itnintry  farmers,  thi-  fron- 
tier>men,  and  the  new  raie  of  uplami  eotton  planters, 
toi^ether  witli  the  Ima-i'hold  manufaeturers,  made  u[)  th.' 
elements  that  overthrew  the  I-'i'deral  foret-s. 

Owing  to  the  eonfu>ion  of  interests,  the  j)re>i(lential 
eK'ction  was  extreini'Iy  i  lose,  so  elose  that  no  one  re- 
ceix'ed  a  majority  of  the  electoral  votes.  The  eleelion, 
therefore,  went  to  the  House  of  kepresentalives.  where 
Thomas  JetYerson  was  eho>en  a>  l're>ident.  with  Aaron 
Ikirr  as  \'ite  I're>ident.  Thi>  ri'sult  was  not  aeiom- 
plished  without  some  political  intrij^ue  on  the  i)art  of 
Hamilton  and  Aaron  Burr,  in  whic  h  a  new  force  was  in- 
troduced into  .\merican  politics  by  the  latter  This 
was  the  famous  Tammany  Society  of  New  ^'c)rk.  which 
had  been  founded  as  a  social  and  philanthro[)ic  society 
in  1789.' 

Before  the  Federalists  lost  control,  they  took  one  more 
long  step  in  the  jK-rfcction  of  the  program  of  centraliza- 
tion and  remo\al  of  the  government  from  democratic 
control.  They  had  formulated  the  constitution  in  secret, 
secured  ii3  adoption  by  deceit  and  gerrymandering, 
extended  its  provisions  by  shrewd  legislation,  and  made 
it  clearly  an  instrument  of  class  government.  The  ne.xt 
step  was  to  remove  the  fmal  power  of  control  from  the 
people  and  vest  it  in  the  courts.  The  t'lrst  move  toward 
the  accomplisliment  of  this  was  a  series  of  laws  passed 
during  the  very  last  day?  of  Federal  rule,  increasing  the 

Parties,"  Vol.  II,  j.p.  ijc^iji- 


i.'6 


S()(l\l.    lOkCKS    l\    AMI.KICAN    lll>r<)KV 


nunilxT  of  courts  f,ir  hc^ond  the  iici'd^  of  tin-  (ouiitrv  iii 
the  liiiif.  I^cry  place  lluis  (TiMtcil  \va->  ,it  oiu  i-  filled 
with  a  >taruli  l-'ederalist.  Tradition  say^  that  the  work 
of  si^^iiiiij,'  the  (()tiimi.-<>ions  of  lhe>e  judges  was  stopped 
only  wlien  a  nie>senmT  from  JelTer.-on  stayed  the  hand 
of  the  secretary  at  nnchii^lit,  Marih  v'- 

IIa\  iliL;  th;i>  erec  leil  a  >ui)reiMe  power  heyon<l  the  re.u  h 
of  the  people,  they  plaeed  at  the  head  of  tlie  judi'  i.irv 
a  man  who  was  to  larry  this  ii>urpation  of  power  to  the 
uttermost  limits  and  to  tix  it  tlvre  for  a  century  to  eome. 
This  man  was  Jolin  .Mar>liall.  who  occ  ui)ie(l  the  i)osition 
of  Chief  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  t"or  thirty-four  years, 
receiving,'  his  a[)|>oinlment  in  iSoi.  During;  this  time  he 
constantly  extended  and  strengthened  the  power  of  his 
otTice  until  it  reached  proportions  undreamed  of  even 
by  those  who  founded  this  government,  with  the  possible 
cxcejJtion  of  Hamilton.' 

I.esl  it  may  be  thought  that  I  exaggerate  the  extent  of 
the  re\()lutionary  usuri)ation  of  power  by  Marshall  and 
its  influence  on  subsequent  history,  I  will  quote  from 
an  authoritative  legal  work  at  this  point.  Joseph  P. 
Cotton,  in  his  "Constitutional  Decisions  of  John  Mar- 
shall," says :  — 

''In  iSoi  one  of  these  'midnight  judges,'  Marbury, 
applied  for  a  mandamus  to  require  the  issue  of  his  com- 
mission, and  in  1S03  Marshall  delivered  his  ojiinion  on 
that  application.  This  opinion  is  the  beginning  of 
American  constitutional  law.     In  it  Marshall  announced 

'  Thr  Frdi-rali^t,  No.  LXXX,  "Kxtcnt  of  the  .Xuthorily  of  the  Judi- 
ci;ir\-,"  1)\  H.iniilion,  mntaiiis  ;i  passage  that  may  fK)Ssil)ly  l>e  uniier- 
stcxxl  to  im[)Iy  the  exi>ieiue  of  such  [)Ower,  hut  this  is  doubtful,  and  it 
1-1  ivii.uii  iiMi  III)  uiu-  I  l.tiinid  il  o|n-iii_s  ul  liie  lime  ui  tiic  uciopUoii  of 
the  constitution. 


KLI.i;   OI     I'l.AMAI  i'i\     \M»    IkoNMIk 


»-7 


itu-  ri;;lit  nl  the  Supriini'  Court  to  rf\  irw  the  <on->titu- 
tioiialit)-  of  the  ;nt>ol  the  nalioii.il  lii;i-l,iluri  and  the 
I'Xri  Litue,  the  loordinatc  braiKhr.-.  of  llu-  j;o\  iTiiment. 
Siuh  a  power  had  been  >i)okeii  of  in  lertain  opinion^,  and, 
indeed,  ai  ted  upon  in  unimportant  ia>en  in  the  >tatc 
eourt>,  l)ut  ne\cr  in  the  Federal  court-..  Connnon  a.s 
thi>  eoiueption  of  our  court.--  now  i.^.  ijL  i>  li.ird  to  eoin- 
l)rehend  the  ania/iiif,'  (|uaHt_\  of  il  thru.  .\o  (ourt  in 
lOn^^'Iand  iiad  >ui'h  powi-r ;  there  wa>  no  t  xpre-^  w.irranl 
for  it  in  tlu-  word-  of  the  C"()n>titution ;  the  i\i-<tenie  of 
it  was  denied  hy  e\ery  other  hraiuh  of  the  ^'o\ernnient 
and  1)\-  the  donunant  majority  of  thi-  lountry.  More- 
o\iT,  no  sui  h  power  hatl  hi-en  ( learly  anti'  ipated  by  the 
framer-.  of  the  ("on>litution.  nor  wa->  it  a  neee-->ar>  irn- 
l)h(alion  from  the  selieme  of  ^ovirtinient  tlie}-  had  es- 
tablished. If  th.it  dm  trine  were  to  l)e  law,  the  Supreme 
Cijurt  was  indeed  a  linal  i)owit  in  a  democraLy,  beyond 
the  reach  of  pubHc  opinion." 

This  completed  the  process  of  usurpation  of  power  and 
destruction  of  democratic  contrt)l  which  was  bej^un  with 
the  first  arran<^er.ients  for  a  constitutional  toruention. 
With  this  jiower  to  declare  laws  unconstilulioiud  in  its 
possession  the  Supreme  Court  posses>cd  an  absolute  veto 
on  all  legislation  and  was  it.self  out  of  the  reach  of  the 
voters. 

Jefferson,  the  representative  of  Southern  plantation  and 
frontier  farmer  interests,  has  always  been  hailed  as  the 
jtrophet  of  democracy.  But  his  democracy,  in  accordance 
with  the  interests  he  represented,  was  that  of  individual- 
ism, of  phiU)soj)hic  anarchy,  rather  than  of  associated 
effort  under  common  management.  The  cotton  i)lan- 
tation  owner,  whose  working  class  of  chattel  slaves  was 


128  SOCIAL   FOI  '  i:S   IN    AMKRICAX   HISTORY 

forever  del)  irred  from  political  activity,  could  easily 
champion  this  democracy.  He  would  enfranchise  the 
Northern  \va^e\vorkers  whom  he  hoped,  and  rightly,  as 
subsequent  events  showed,  might  become  his  aliies 
against  the  Northern  merchants  and  manufacturers. 
The  pioneer  was  always  democratic  in  this  individualistic 
sense.  Class  distinctions  had  not  yet  arisen  on  the  fron- 
tic.  (Jhio,  Kentucky,  and  Tennessee,  which  were  ad- 
mitted to  the  Union  during  this  period,  were  the  first 
states  to  embody  universal  suffrage  in  their  constitutions. 

This  alliance  between  jjlantc-  and  frontiersman  is  the 
key  to  the  political  policy  of  much  of  this  period.  This 
alliance  was  easier  at  this  time  than  at  any  later  period. 
Western  emigration  was  largely  from  the  Southern  states. 
The  great  stream  of  peoples  was  flowing  from  \"irginia 
and  the  Carolinas  through  the  Cumberland  Gap  into 
Kentucky  and  Tennessee.  The  South  saw  in  this  move- 
ment an  extension  of  its  power  into  the  future  as  well  as 
geographically. 

Much  of  the  work  of  Jefferson  was  connected  with  the 
West.  He  had  been  active  in  formulating  the  Ordinance 
of  1787  for  the  government  of  the  Northwest  Territory 
during  the  dying  days  of  the  Confederation,  and  his  in- 
terest in  the  Western  movement  had  always  been  close. 
He  devised  the  system  of  land  survey  by  townships, 
ranges,  and  sections,  that  has  done  so  much  to  make 
American  real  estate  more  thoroughly  a  commodity  than 
the  land  of  any  other  country.  He  bought  Louisiana,  sent 
Lewis  and  Clark,  and  Pike  to  explore  the  Far  West,  and 
began  the  famous  Cumberland  Road  as  a  part  of  an  ex- 
tensive system  of  internal  improvements.  During  this 
period  Congress  was  always  willing  to  appropriate  money 


•>     i'V 


r-:*t^- 


RULE  OF   PLANTATION   ANIJ    FRONTIKR 


1.^9 


for  the  settlement  of  Indian  claims,  or  for  the  defense  of 
the  frontier  in  Indian  wars. 

To  all  these  measures  the  New  England  commercial 
interests  were  hostile.  To  a  certain  extent  this  was  a 
result  of  sectional  isolation  as  well  as  material  interests. 
New  Englantl  had  developed  a  most  intense  sectional 
life,  with  its  own  customs,  prejudices,  dialects,  religion, 
and  local  patriotism,  and  because  of  the  intensive  char- 
acter of  these  ideas  and  institutions,  was  to  impress  them 
deeply  upon  large  sections  of  the  country. 

Such  isolation  and  concentration  of  thought  and  in- 
terests and  policy  were  bound  to  become  sei)aratist  when 
they  were  antagonized.  When  the  Federalists  under 
Adams  passed  the  Alien  and  Sedition  Laws,  Kentucky  and 
\'irginia  passed  resolutions  hinting  at  secession.  Now 
the  South  and  West  were  in  control,  with  Virginia  domi- 
nant, and  it  was  the  turn  of  New  England,  with  Massa- 
chusetts at  the  head,  to  become  "treasonable."  For 
several  years  this  section  was  openly  to  advocate  and 
secretly  to  plot  secession  until  another  turn  in  industrial 
development  should  give  New  Engla;id  interests  the 
ruling  hand,  when  the  doctrine  of  secession  would  once 
more  take  up  its  abode  in  the  South.' 

It  was  the  purchase  of  Louisiana  that  particularly 
aggravated  the  New  England  states.  This  was  an  appli- 
cation of  their  own  philosophy  in  regard  to  the  constitu- 
tion.    There  was  no  provision  in  that  instrument  for 


>  ^T^^Iaste^,  "History  of  the  People  of  the  United  States,"  Vol.  Ill, 
pp.  42-4S;  Wilson,  ".\  History  of  the  .Vmerican  People,"  Vol.  Ill, 
p.  184;  Hililrith,  "Histor\  of  the  United  States,"  Vol.  V,  p.  584;  Von 
Hoist.,  "Constitutional  History  of  the  United  States,"  Vol.  1,  pp.  185- 
186. 


wm 


k.,..i'piii.ii.iyi"  ii 


I30 


SOCIAL   F')RCi;S   I.\    AMKRICAN    HISTORY 


the  j)iir(li:.se  of  new  tiritory,  ;in(l  no  Federalist  hiul 
ever  }^i\en  as  "liberal  construction"  to  a  constitutional 
(motion  as  did  JelYersfjn  when  he  purchased  Louisiana, 
and  i)rovi(Jed  for  its  government  directly  from  the 
national  cajjital  without  the  consent  of  the  inhabitants, 
and  with  little  more  than  a  notification  to  Congress. 

I  lowever  discontented  \ew  England  might  be,  it  could 
not  be  denied  that  her  merchants  were  prosperous.  The 
liigh  tide  of  American  commerce  was  readied  in  1810  with 
a  total  tonnage  of  1,424,783  tons.  Xew  England  sliips 
were  in  every  harbor.  The  Oriental  trade  hail  become 
esj)ecially  profitable.  The  road  to  India  was  at  last 
running  through  America,  though  not  e.xactly  as  Colum- 
bus had  dreamed. 

With  the  beginnings  of  a  factory  system  and  the  rise 
of  a  body  of  wageworkers  there  appear  traces  of  organized 
labor  and  a  struggle  between  employers  and  euiployees. 
The  jietitions  to  Congress  for  higher  tarilT  and  for  relief 
and  assistance  for  various  industries  all  complain  of  the 
high  wages  which  must  be  paid.  Such  a  complaint 
indicates  several  things  in  addition  to  the  political  im- 
potence of  the  wageworkers.  It  is  a  fairly  sure  sign  that 
wages  were  rising,  rather  than  that  they  were  already 
high.     McMaster  concludes  from  his  investigations  that,' 

"The  rates  of  wages  were  dilTerent  in  each  of  the  three 
great  belts  along  which  population  was  streaming  west- 
ward. The  highest  rates  were  paid  in  the  Xew  England 
belt,  which  stretched  across  the  country  from  Massachu- 
setts to  Ohio.  The  lowest  rates  pre\ailed  in  the  southern 
belt,  which  extended  from   the  Ca.-olinas  to  Louisiana, 


'  "ni>tor>  of  ihf  ri-opli' of  ihc  riiiltd  Slatis,"  \'ol.  Ill,  f)!)- 50<)-3is, 
is  a  Koo(!  »ur\i'y  of  iabur  tondilioiis. 


imm 


RULi:   OF   PLANTATION   AND    FRONTIKR 


131 


In  each  of  these  bands  again  wages  were  lowest  on  the 
Atlantic  seaboard,  and.  increasing  raj)i(IIy  in  a  western 
direction,  were  greatest  in  the  Mississippi  Valley." 

A  contemi)()rary  authority  furnishes  an  estimate  of  the 
wages  paid  at  this  time  in  the  most  northern  belt,  where 
they  were  supposed  to  be  the  highest.  Ilis  figures  are 
as  follows: '    - 

1774  1R04  1S07  IROQ 

Wage's  per  day     ....  $.50  S.75  S.75  $.80 

Wheat  per  bushel     ...     .65  1.55  1.55  i.oo 

These  wages  were  certainly  not  high  enough  to  seem 
to  require  any  action  on  the  part  of  Congress  to  enable 
the  employers  to  pay  them.  The  figures  for  the  last  two 
years  given  above  confirm  the  general  impression  that 
Wages  were  rising  at  this  time.  Skilled  workmen  were 
beginning  to  organize  unions,  and  here  and  there  strikes 
took  place. 

Strikes  and  unions  were  still  illegal.  When  the  cord- 
wainers  (a  branch  of  the  shoemaking  trade)  went  out  on 
strike  in  Philadeljihia  in  1805,  they  were  convicted  of 
conspiracy  and  fined,  after  which  they  opened  up  a  shop 
of  their  own  and  appealed  to  the  public  for  patronage. 

In  Xew  York  the  growth  of  a  wageworking  class  was 

'  Xilfs'  Register.  \'o\.  I,  p.  "Q  (quotinR  from  HI(k1kiI's  "  K(()n()mi<s  "  ; 
McMaster,  in  Atlantic  .\fon!/ily,  Vol.  LXXV,  p.  22,  says  of  iSoo:  "Sol- 
diers in  the  army  renived  three  (lol'ari-  month.  larm  h.mds  in  New 
Kni,'Iand  were  Riven  $4  a  month  and  found  their  own  elothes.  Unskilled 
laborers  toiled  twelve  hours  |)er  day  for  fifty  tents.  Workmen  on  turn- 
pikes, then  branching  out  in  every  direction,  were  hous<d  in  rude  sheds, 
fed  toar^e  f(X)d,  and  Riven  $4  a  month  from  November  to  .May  and 
$()  from  May  to  N(nemher.  When  the  road  from  (lenesee  River  to 
Buffalo  was  under  construction  in  181  j,  though  the  region  through  which 
it  Went  was  frontier,  men  were  hired  in  plenty  for  Si  j  per  month  in  cash, 
and  their  board,  lodging;,  and  a  daily  allowance  of  whisky." 


.■■»i;7"i  ■ 


,-VT-' 


:y;^i|''^ 


132 


SOCIAL    FORCKS    IN    AMMRICAN    HISTORY 


having  another  effect.  Here  it  was  laying  the  foundations 
for  (lenioer.uy.  During  the  time  of  the  Revolution,  the 
adoption  of  the  ccjnstitution.  and  the  Ilamiltonian  re- 
gime, tlie  j)roi)erty  qualifications  for  office  and  even  for 
tlie  suffrage  were  so  Iiigh  that  the  wageworking  chiss 
was  ignored  by  the  politicians.  Xor  were  the  members 
of  this  class  sufliciently  numerous  to  make  any  effective 
protest  against  this  disfranchisement.' 

During  tiie  first  decade  of  the  nineteenth  century,  how- 
ever, a  .spirit  of  rclx'llion  against  these  restrictions  began 
to  i)e  felt  in  Xew  \'ork.  This  first  germ  of  a  labor  move- 
ment sought  to  widen  the  political  powers  as  well  as 
imi)rove  the  industrial  condition  of  its  members.  In 
New  York  some  success  was  achieved  in  this  direction, 
and  at  once  there  a])peared  that  other  phase  of  class  rule 
under  the  form  of  democracy,  the  political  machine. 
Up  to  this  time  candidates  had  been  nominated  either 
by  informal  gatherings  of  ''prominent  citizens"  or  by 
caucuses  of  nunrbers  of  the  state  legislatures  or  Con- 
gress.^ Now  there  were  signs  of  so-call.'d  "popular'' 
caucuses,  and  appeals  began  to  be  made  to  labor. 

On  the  whole,  this  was  a  period  of  the  beginning  of 
things  that  are  familiar  features  of  the  society  of  three 
(juarters  of  a  century  later.  It  was  to  be  a  generation, 
however,  before  any  of  these  forces  were  to  become 
prominent,  social  features. 

Jefferson  went  into  <  iTicc  as  the  exponent  of  the  idea 

•  "  Mcniori.il  History  of  Now  York,"  \'ol.  Ill,  pp.  i.s  i4  ;  McMastcr, 
''History  of  the  IVoplc  of  the  I'nited  Siatt.-;,"  \'ol.  Ill,  C'h.ip.  X\'II; 
.V//(  v'  h'ii::\ltr.  \"ol.  I,  pp.  80-81,  contains  table  of  electoral  cjualitKa- 
ti>ins  in  all  >tatcs. 

-  ( »^trol.'o^ski.  "  Democracy  and  the  Organization  of  Political  Parties," 
Vol.  II,  p.  12. 


*  '. 


"  jsi"  -     \-%  ff'^^'si£i: 


■^.  v*fe<?  . 


RULE  OF   I'LANTATION    ANI>   FRONTIKK 


133 


that  the  constitution  sliould  be  "strictly  construed." 
that  the  central  government  should  be  closely  limited 
in  its  powers,  and,  above  all,  should  never  be  used  to 
serve  sectional  or  class  interests.  Yet  never  was  the 
constitution  stretched  farther  than  by  the  purchase  of 
Louisiana  and  its  government  direct  from  the  White 
House.  The  powers  which  the  Federal  government  e.x- 
ercised  in  the  preliminary  steps  to  the  War  of  181 2,  when 
an  embargo  was  laid  on  all  commerce  and  Federal  oiTi- 
cers  were  given  the  right  of  search  and  seizure,  exceeded 
anything  done  by  Hamilton.  The  fact  that  the  pos- 
session of  centraliz.ed  power  led  Jefferson  to  use  and  ex- 
tend that  power  in  the  interest  of  those  to  whom  he  owed 
his  election,  is  noted  by  nearly  all  historians.  Although 
he  came  into  office  talking  of  the  "revolution"  due  to 
his  election,  yet, 

"The  great  mass  of  the  men,  who  in  1800  voted  for 
Adams,  could  in  1804  see  no  reason  whatever  for  voting 
against  Jefferson.  Scarcely  a  Federal  institution  was 
missed.  They  saw  the  debt,  the  bank,  the  navy,  still 
preserved ;  they  saw  a  broad  construction  of  the  consti- 
tution, a  strong  government  exercising  the  rights  of  sov- 
ereignty, paying  small  regard  to  the  rights  of  States,  and 
growing  more  and  more  national  day  by  day,  and  they 
gave  it  a  hearty  support,  as  a  government  administered 
on  the  principles  for  which,  ever  since  the  constitution 
was  in  force,  they  had  contended."  ' 

>  McMaster,  loc.  cit..  Vol.  Ill,  p.  198. 


CHAPTER   XII 

THE   WESTWARD  MAKCH  OF  A  PEOPLE 

It  has  been  noted  that  with  Jefferson  a  new  political 
force  first  made  itself  felt  in  national  politics.  This  was 
the  frontier.  This  ever  moving  frontier  has  been  the  one 
distinctive  feature  of  American  society.  A  full  under- 
standing of  its  influence  unlocks  many  a  diflicult  problem 
in  that  history. 

He  who  would  write  the  history  of  Greece,  Italy,  or 
England  has  but  to  describe  the  life  of  a  body  of  people 
occupying  a  peninsula  in  the  Mediterranean,  or  an  island 
on  the  edge  of  the  Atlantic.  The  scene  of  his  story  is 
fixed.  But  the  history  of  the  United  States  is  the  de- 
scription of  the  march  of  a  mighty  army  moving  westward 
in  conquest  of  forest  and  prairie. 

The  inundating  ocean  of  population  was  held  for  a 
moment  by  the  great  Alleghenian  dam.  At  the  period  we 
have  been  considering,  it  had  just  sought  out  the  low 
places  and  the  unguarded  ends  and  was  flowing  through 
and  around  that  dam.  Along  the  buffalo  paths,  the 
Indian  trails,  and  down  the  open  rivers  it  was  flowing  into 
the  great  Mississippi  Valley.  .\s  it  flowed  it  widened 
the  forest  trails  for  the  pack  trains,  and  graded  them  for 
turnpikes,  and  finally  leveled  the  hills  and  spanned  the 
rivers  with  bridges  on  which  to  lay  the  iron  track  of  the 
locomi)tive. 

134 


dM 


THE   \VEST\VARD    MARCH   OF   A    PEOPLE 


'0:5 


This  army  had  its  scouts,  its  advance  guard,  its  sap- 
pers and  miners,  its  army  of  occupation.  These  various 
battalions  reproduced  in  tu-n  the  various  social  stages 
through  which  the  race  has  passed.  Biology  has  taught 
us  that  the  embryo  reproduces  in  syncopated  form  the 
various  steps  in  the  evolution  of  living  organisms.  The 
ethnologists  and  the  pedagogue  know  that  in  the  same 
manner  the  child  moves  through  mental  stages  much  like 
those  along  which  the  race  has  traveled.  In  the  same 
manner  the  successive  stages  of  .settlement  in  the  march 
of  America's  army  of  pioneers  tells  again  the  story  of 
social  evolution. 

The  advance  guard  of  hunters,  trappers,  fishermen, 
scouts,  and  Indian  fighters  reproduced  with  remarkable 
fidelity  the  social  stage  of  savagery.  They  lived  in  rude 
shelters  built  of  logs  or  of  prairie  sod,  found  their  food 
and  clothing  by  the  chase,  gathered  around  personal 
leaders,  were  often  lawless,  brutal,  and  quarrel.some, 
though  frequently  they  displayed  the  even  more  charac- 
teristically savage  traits  of  taciturn  silence  and  fatalistic 
courage.  These  men  penetrated  hundreds  of  miles  into 
the  wilderness  ahead  of  all  fixed  settlements.  They 
sometimes  fraternized  and  lived  with  the  Indians.  Such 
were  the  French  couriers  dii  hois,  who  gathered  furs  from 
Hudson  Bay  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  exploring  rivers  that 
have  found  place  upon  the  maps  only  within  the  last  few 
decades. 

When  these  scouts  had  spied  out  the  land  the  first 
body  of  the  main  army  of  conquest  appeared.  This  was 
composed  of  the  little  groups  of  settlers  who  clustered 
along  the  watercourses  and  the  main  lines  of  advance. 

These  settlements,  drawn  together  for  mutual  defense 


^ijSSjtS 


^^., 


136 


SOCIAL    I(JKCi:S   IN   AMKRICAX    HISTORY 


a^'.iinst  tlic  Indians,  the  wild  beasts,  and  the  forest  fires, 
and  for  nuitual  coufK-ration  in  house-raisings,  huskinj,', 
quiltinf,'.  and  logging  "bees,"  with  their  "common" 
pastures  in  the  surrounch'ng  forest  and  their  democratic 
social  and  political  organization,  were  so  nuuh  like  llie 
(Jermanic  "tuns"  described  by  Tacitus,  and  the  .Xngio- 
Sa.xon  villages  of  pre-Xorman  days,  that  one  of  the  lore- 
most  American  historians  gravely  explains  the  resem- 
blance by  the  classical  reading  of  Xew  England  rurit;ins. 

The  people  who  formed  this  stage  were  migratory.  No 
sooner  had  they  carve(  )ut  a  little  clearing  in  the  wilder- 
ness than  they  moved  on  to  take  up  the  same  task  farther 
west.  They  too  rallied  around  leaders,  generally  com- 
bined hunting  and  lishing  with  farming,  and  in  every 
war  in  which  the  United  States  has  been  involved,  save 
the  latest,  formed  its  most  elTectivc  fighters.' 

With  this  social  stage  came  the  beginnings  of  agricul- 
ture. It  was  a  crude  cultivation  of  the  soil  that  borrowed 
its  methods  as  well  as  its  only  important  crop  from  the 
Indians.  This  crop,  around  which  the  agricultural  life 
of  large  .sections  of  the  country  has  centered  uj)  to  the 
present  time,  was  Indian  corn,  or  maize.  This  plant 
seems  to  have  been  esfu'cially  evolved  to  meet  the  con- 
ditions of  the  American  frontier.     Without  it  another 

'  T.  Ro«)scvil',  "The  WinninR  of  the  West,"  Vo\.  V,  p.  i:8:  "The 
men  who  settle  in  a  new  country  .md  hem'n  suhfluinK  the  wilderness 
plunge  back  into  the  very  conditions  from  which  the  race  has  raised 
itself  by  the  slow  toil  of  a>;es.  The  conditions  cannot  hut  tell  upon  them. 
Inevitably,  and  for  more  than  one  lifetime,  .  .  .  they  tend  to  retrojjrade 
in^tead  of  advancing.  The>  drop  away  from  the  standard  which  hit'hly 
civili/ed  nations  have  rea(hed.  As  with  harsh  and  dan;,'erous  labor 
flu>  lirini:  the  new  land  i\p  toward  the  level  of  the  old,  they  themselves 
partl\  rexiTt  to  their  .irK-i'stra!  conditi^in.s  :  thev  sink  h:-.ck  toward  the 
Slate  of  their  ages-dead  barbarian  forefathers." 


i 


THK   WESTWARD    MARCH   OF   A   PKOPLK 


'0/ 


generation  or  more  would  have  Ix-en  required  for  the  ad- 
vancing army  of  settlement  to  have  reaelK-d  the  Missis- 
sippi. 

It  can  be  grown  in  the  midst  of  the  forest  if  the  tries 
be  "girdled"  by  removing  a  ring  of  bark,  which  (auscs 
the  leaves  to  fall  until  the  sunlight  can  tiller  through. 
A  sharpened  stake  will  do  for  a  planting  tool  if  nothing 
better  is  at  hand.  It  will  produce  a  consi<lerablc  croj) 
from  virgin  soil  with  little  cultivation,  and  rc>[)onds  richly 
to  added  care.  It  grows  rapiilly.  and  its  green  cars  furnish 
food  early  in  the  season.  When  ri|K\  it  is  easy  of  storage, 
is  not  injured  by  freezing,  C(jntains  a  great  amount  of 
nourishment  in  small  bulk,  and,  what  is  perhaps  most  im- 
portant of  all,  can  be  most  easily  prepared  for  food.  In 
no  one  of  the  various  forms  in  which  it  entered  into  the 
dietary  of  the  pioneer  was  any  elaborate  prei)aration  re- 
quired. On  a  pinch  an  open  Tire  to  roast  th(.'  green  ears 
or  the  ripened  kernels  suflked  to  satisfy  hunger.  It  took 
the  place  of  the  pastures  to  which  the  colonists  had  been 
accustomed  in  Europe.  As  higher  stages  of  agriculture 
were  reached  it  became  the  foundation  of  the  entire  live- 
stock industry  of  the  nation.' 

Following  this  stage  in  the  East,  and  preceding  it  in 
the  West,  whe'-e  the  Indians  were  held  back  by  the  regu- 

'  Roosevelt,  "WinniriKof  tlie  West."  \'(il.  I,  |>|i.  iio-iii  ;  Massaihu- 
sctts  .\Kriinltunil  Re[X)rt,  185?,  •>.  48^;  Stickuey,  "I'se  of  Mai/e  hy 
Wisconsin  Indians,"  p.  71  ;  Shaler,  "The  I'nited  States  of  America," 
\'ol.  I,  p|).  26-J7;  Census  of  18S0,  volume  on  "Aurieiiltiire."  fan  I,[).  i,vs; 
J.  H.  Salisbury,  "History  and  Chemical  Investigation  of  Mai/e  "  ;  I'arkin- 
son."Tour  in  Xorth  America,"  [ip.  io.S-iqq;  Orake,  "  I'ionecr  Life  in  Ken- 
tucky," pp.  47-57;  Michaux,  "Travels,"  etc.,  Ch,i[i.  XII.  These  are 
some  of  the  works  discussing  the  importance  of  torn  in  this  state  of 
American  historv  and  descrihint?  the  methods  by  which  it  was  cultivated 
and  prepared  for  consumption. 


il 


;i 


f 


n 


i,^S       s()(  lAi,  roRci:.s  i.\  amkkfc.w  iiistorv 

lar  army  an<l  not  driven  out  by  tlic  fn.ntiVrsmen,  came 
a  third  division  composed  of  the  <..\vl)oy>.  herdsmen, 
randimen.  as  they  were  variou^ly  called.  Here  we  find' 
a  rei)r()(iuction  of  many  featurc-s  of  the  noniadie  sta^e  of 
social  ev<.lution.  Wh.-n  the  raee  pa.M'd  through  this 
period,  the  lar^e  social  unit  which  the  care  of  the  herds 
demands  was  supi)lied  hy  the  patriarchal  familv  so  famil- 
iar in  the  pajres  of  the  Old  Testament.  In  America  the 
rancher  with  his  force  of  cowboys,  c.ioks.  etc.,  formed  a 
very  similar  self-supporting  unit.  We  are  accustomed 
to  think  of  this  sta^e  as  having'  be.  m  confined  to  the  sec- 
oncl  half  of  the  nineteenth  centur\  and  the  Great  Plains 
rej^'ion. 

Like  the  other  social  stages,  however,  it  has  traveled 
across  the  continent.  It  existed  wherever  abundant 
pasture  could  be  found,  not  yet  divided  into  farms,  and 
not  too  far  from  a  market  to  permit  the  driving  of  the 
cattle  to  the  place  of  slaughter.  This  stage  was  found 
prior  to  the  Revolution  in  the  Carolinas  and  Virginia,  on 
the  eastern  slope  of  the  Alleghenies.'      It  came  over  the 

'  John  II.  LoKan,  "IliViory  ..f  the  fi.p.r  C.untrv  <.f  Smnh  Carolina  " 
yakinK  of  prcrcvokitionary   times,  .says   fp,..  15,  - 1  s-')  :  "  .\„t  far  from 
the   {(.i;  hut    of  thi-    hunttT  stood   that   of    the  (,.u-,lriver.   .   .  .     The 
l.usiness  of  stock-raisini,'  at  this  time  on  tiie  frontier  was  scarcely  less 
F)rolital>le  than  it  is  at  [iresent   (iS,:;,,)  in  similar  re;;ions  of  the  West 
.  .   .     Havm-  selected   a   tract    where   cane  and   ,.ea-vines  ^rew   most 
luxuriantly,  they  erected  in  the  midst  „f  it  tempnr.irv  cabins  and  si)a- 
cious  pens.     These  were  used  as  inclosures  in  whi>  h  to  cliect  the  .attle 
at  pro|KT  seasons.  f„r  the  purpose  of  countin-  an.!  Lrandin-  them-   and 
from  many  su.  h  places  in  the  upper  ...untrv,  \a.t   numliers  „f  h'eeves 
were  annually  driven  to  the  .iistant  markets  of  Charleston.  Philadelphia 
and  even   Xew   York.   .   .  .     These  rude  estahlishments  l.ecame  after- 
wards,  wherever   they   were  formed,  the   Kreat    centers  of  .settlements 
founded  l,y  the  cultivators  of  the  soil,  who  followed  just  behind  the  .,nv- 
aiiveis  in  Lheir  cntcrprisinK  search  for  unapprui)riaied  productive  lands  " 


fci.il- 


^^MM^^^^&^^^^s^9^^W^^^^y^JfSr^^jaWZ^^^- 


THi:   WESTWARD    MARCH   OF   A    PKOrLK 


139 


m()'-''*:'in.s  behind  the  hunters,  trappers,  and  conquerors 
of  thv;  wilderness  and  fl<-urished  in  the  wild  pea  pastures 
along  the  (Jhio.  By  1830  this  stage  was  readied  on  the 
prairies  of  Illinois ;  a  decade  later  it  had  crossed  the 
Mississippi,  where  it  was  to  reach  its  final  spectacular 
cfnore^itence  on  the  Oreut  Plains  at  the  foot  of  the 
Rockies. 

Following  the  ranch  came  the  small  farmer,  permanent 
towns,  manufacturing,  and  the  general  features  of  the 
small,  competitive  system.  From  here  on  to  the  present 
the  course  of  evolution  will  be  consiilered  under  other 
heads. 

Within  each  of  these  stages,  and  more  especially  the 
latter,  there  have  been  minor  divisions  that  have  moved 
across  the  country  within  the  general  army  at  approx- 
imately the  same  rate  of  speed.  Some  of  these  divisions 
have  never  occupied  certain  sections.  Changes  in  meth- 
ods of  transportation  have  fundamentally  altered  the 
whole  order  of  progress  of  the  army.  Vet  in  spite  of  these 
deviations  from  the  ideal  simplicity  that  has  been 
sketched,  the  mighty  fact  of  these  onward  marching 
battalions  of  society  is  the  dominant  feature  of  Amer- 
ican history,  without  a  grasp  of  which  that  history  is  an 
almost  unintelligible  maze. 

When  we  speak  of  the  "frontier,"  therefore,  it  is  neces- 
sary that  we  say  which  frontier  is  meant,  fr-  the  ad- 
vancing crest  of  each  of  these  waves  has  been  the  frontier 
for  that  social  stage.  The  word  is  most  frequently 
applied  to  the  stage  in  which  the  wilderness  was  cleared, 
the  prairie  sod  broken,  and  the  land  made  fit  for  agricul- 
ture. As  it  is  used  henceforth  in  this  work,  unless  other- 
wise defined,  it  will  be  applied  to  that  whole  series  of 


^ 


m^-^^^m>  fm^^ 


140 


.SO(  lAI,    lOKv 


I.N    AMl.klCAN    HISTORY 


fr(>ntiiT>  up  (()  ihf  lime  of  the  coming  of  small  industries 
and  conijKtitivf  c.ipitulism. 

Wliilf  the  frontier  existed,  this  was  the  only  country 
in  the  world  that  for  many  generations  i)ermitted  its 
inhabitants  to  i  hoose  in  which  of  the  historic  stage>  of 
social  evolution  they  would  live.  The  competition- 
(ru;-,he(l.  unemployed,  or  black-listed  worker  of  cap- 
it. ilism  moved  west  into  the  small,  competitive  stage 
with  its  greater  opportunities  for  self-emi)loyment  or 
for  "rising."  He  could  move  onward  geograi)hically 
and  backward  historically  to  the  semicommunistic  stage 
of  the  first  permanent  settlers  who  would  help  him  raise 
his  log  cabin  and  clear  the  ground  for  his  first  crop  of  corn. 
Il  he  felt  himself  hi-mmed  in  by  even  the  slight  restric- 
tions of  this  stage,  he  could  shoulder  his  rille  and  revert  to 
the  wilderness  and  savagery. 

71ie  frontier  has  been  the  great  amalgamating  force 
in  .American  life.  It  took  the  European  and  in  a  single 
lifetime  sent  him  through  the  racial  evolution  of  a  hun- 
dred generations.  When  he  had  fmished,  the  few  [pecul- 
iar customs  he  had  brought  from  a  single  country  were 
gone,  and  he  was  that  peculiarly  twentieth  century 
product.  -  the  typical  American.  Only  since  the  fron- 
tier has  disappeared  have  great  colonies  grown  'ip  in 
which  all  the  national  i>ecuHarities  of  those  who  compose 
them  are  accentuated  by  the  internal  resistance  to  the 
seemingly  hostile  territory  about  them. 

Those  individuals  who  are  most  commonly  instanced 
as  distinctively  .Vmerican  are  largely  born  of  the  fron- 
tier and  have  passed  through  its  successive  stages. 

The  frontier  has  given  rise  to  the  only  race  of  hereditarv 
rebels  in  history.     One  strange  feature  of  this  westward 


THK   WT.STWARI)    MARCH   OF   A   TKOi^LE 


141 


march  has  bcLii  the  remarkable  tcndrncv  of  the  same 
families  to  remain  continuously  in  the  simc  social  stage, 
movinj^  westward  as  the  succeeding  stage  encroached 
upon  the  one  they  had  chosen.  The  fathers  of  those  who 
settled  on  the  Great  I'lain.->  and  in  the  valleys  of  the 
Cordilleras  lived  in  the  states  of  the  Mi»issi|)|)i  Valley. 
anci  their  grandparents  con(|uered  the  forests  in  Ohio. 
Kentucky,  and  Tennessee,  while  the  {)receding  genera- 
tion had  its  home  in  western  New  York,  Pennsylvania, 
or  Virginia. 

This  pioneer  race  had  large  families,  a  high  death- 
rate,  but  a  far  higher  birthright.  It  has  been  pointed 
out  that  this  applied  the  principle  of  natural  selection  in 
a  most  pitiless  and  effective  manner.'  It  produced  a  race 
physically  large  and  strong,  mentally  alert,  and  socially 
rebellious.  It  is  a  race  willing  to  try  social  experiments. 
The  man  who  w^ithin  his  own  lifetime  has  seen  the  whole 
process  of  social  evolution  going  on  under  his  eyes  is 
not  a  believer  in  the  unchangeableness  of  social  institu- 
tions. 

These  social  stages  have  not  existed  side  by  side  with- 
out friction.  Eadi  has  desired  to  use  the  government 
to  further  its  interests.  In  this  conflict  of  interest  is 
found  an  explanation  of  many  political  struggles.  It 
was  such  a  clash  of  interests  that  made  itself  felt  in  the 
fight  over  the  constitution.  It  was  a  factor  in  the  elec- 
tion of  JefTcrson.  It  appears  again  and  again  throughout 
American  history. 

In  many  respects  the  description  of  the  frontier  and 
its  progress  which  has  been  given  here  applies  only  to 
the  non-slaveholding  states.    While  slavery   e.xisted   it 
*  Doyle,  "  English  Colonies  in  America,"  Vol.  II,  p.  56. 


i 


142 


SOCIAL   FORCES   IN  AMERICAN  mSTORY 


Mf 


changed  the  method  of  westward  acivance  in  the  South 
fundamentally.  The  struggle  of  these  two  methods  of 
westward  movement  culminated  in  the  Civil  War,  and 
it  was  the  battle  for  the  frontier  that  brought  the  slavery 
question  to  a  climax. 

These  various  general  features  of  the  frontier  movement 
are  brought  together  in  this  chapter,  not  in  order  to  treat 
them  in  full,  but  in  order  to  emphasize  this  highly  sig- 
nificant phase  of  American  history  and  make  more  com- 
prehensible a  whole  series  of  questions  which  must  ap- 
pear in  the  consideration  of  that  history.* 

'  F.  J.  Turner,  "The  SiKnificanrcof  the  Frontier  in  American  History," 
is  by  far  the  best  discussion  of  this  phase  of  American  history.  See  also 
.Scmple,  "American  History  and  its  Geographic  Conditions,"  Chap.  IV  ; 
and  Gannet,  "The  Building  of  a  .Nation,"  p.  39  et  scq. 


ia\ 


m 


!>      I    '• 


CHAPTER   XIII 

THE   BIRTH   OF  THE   FACTORY  SYSTEM 

So  far  as  battles,  campaigns,  glorious  victories,  great 
diplomacy,  and  other  similar  paraphernalia  with  which 
some  historians  are  mainly  concerned,  the  War  of  1812 
was  insignificant.  While  jingos  boast  of  "how  we  licked 
the  Britishers,"  and  it  occuines  much  space  in  our  school 
histories,  yet  in  a  wider  and  more  accurate  vision  this 
war  is  seen  to  be  but  a  small  incident  in  the  great  world 
war  in  which  Napoleon  was  the  central  figure.  Among 
the  many  nickname  *hat  have  been  applied  to  this  con- 
flict is  "The  War  oi  Paradoxes."  It  was  waged  in  de- 
fense of  maritime  interests.  L  ;t  the  merchant  states 
threatened  to  secede  to  stop  it.  The  alleged  cause  of  the 
war  (the  English  "Orders  in  Council")  was  repealed 
before  war  was  declared.  The  most  important  battle  of 
the  war  (New  Orleans)  was  fought  after  the  treaty  of 
peace  had  been  signed,  and  the  original  subject  of  dis- 
pute (impressment  of  seamen)  was  never  mentioned  in 
the  treaty  of  peace.  Finally,  the  New  England  states 
that  were  so  eager  for  peace  were  ruined  by  its  coming, 
and  the  South  that  desired  war  found  its  prosperity  in 
peace. 

Although  many  generations  of  children  have  be  » 
taught  that  this  war  was  a  series  of  "glorious  victories," 
respect  for  truth  compels  the  statement  that  the  United 
States  was  whipped  in  nearly  every  campaign,  that  the 

143 


i 


W^SWW^p^^. 


144  SOCIAL  FORCES   IN  AMERICAN  HISTORY 

capitol  was  burned,  the  coast  closely  blockaded  through- 
out the  war,  and  in  spite  of  all  the  stories  of  how  "we 
humbled  the  mistress  of  the  seas,"  the  American  navy 
was  praciically  wiped  out  of  existence. 

The  story  of  the  origin  of  the  war  explains  some  of  these 
contradictions.  England  was  battling  with  Xaixjleon 
for  the  mastery  of  Europe  and  of  the  world.  She  was 
victorious  on  the  seas,  and  was  depending  upon  that  com- 
mercial sui)remacy  for  resources  with  which  to  fight.  In 
this  titanic  conflict  both  sides  were  determined  that  there 
should  be  no  neutrals.  They  could  not  well  make  any 
other  decision.  The  war  was  so  much  for  commercial 
supremacy  that  to  admit  the  existence  of  a  neutral  was 
to  give  that  neutral  control  of  the  object  for  which  the 
struggle  was  waged. 

Napoleon  had  declared  a  blockade  of  England,  and 
England  had  blockaded  nearly  all  of  Europe  to  ships 
that  had  not  first  cleared  from  a  British  port.  Napoleon 
in  turn  had  declared  that  all  ships  that  did  so  clear  were 
contraband  of  war.  The  result  of  these  "Orders  in 
Council"  and  "Berlin  and  Milan  Decrees"  was  that  Eng- 
lish and  French  ships  preyed  upon  the  commerce  of  the 
United  States.  In  spite  of  this  fact,  American  commerce 
grew  in  a  most  startling  manner,  until  a  few  New  Eng- 
land states  were  carrying  almost  one  third  of  the  com- 
merce of  the  world. 

In  her  effort  to  secure  sailors  to  man  the  gigantic  navy 
required  by  the  Napoleonic  wars,  England  was  in  the 
habit  of  stopping  merchant  vessels  of  the  United  States 
and  impressing  such  members  of  their  crews  as  she  desired, 
with  the  excuse  that  they  were  British  deserters.  To  be 
sure  a  large  percentage  of  the  men  so  seized  were  deserters 


;i   1 1 


P^^ii 


^-^^M 


_  ,K-.^^^\ii.::.^j 


-'i^^i'fe 


^FW^^^lm^ISiinnj¥M3 


THE   BIRTH   OF   THE   FACTORY   SYSTEM 


M5 


from  the  British  navy.  The  great  profits  of  American 
commerce  enabled  the  shipowners  to  pay  such  wages 
that  every  British  warship  anchoring  in  American  waters 
lost  a  good  portion  of  its  crew. 

The  plantation  interests  represented  by  JelTerson  had 
little  understanding  or  sympathy  with  the  \ew  England 
merchants.  Jefferson  was  inclined  to  temporize  and 
ex|)eriment.  At  first  the  New  England  merchants  were 
belligerent  in  their  talk  and  petitions  to  Congress,  but 
they  soon  discovered  that  more  money  could  be  made 
running  blockades  than  in  a  domestic  war,  and  became 
the  strongest  opponents  of  all  retaliatory  measures. 

The  cotton  planters,  on  the  other  hand,  were  anxious 
for  war,  or  at  least  for  some  sort  of  reprisals  directed 
against  England."  They  were  selling  their  cotton  to 
that  country.  The  price  was  low,  and  the  old  antag- 
onism between  buyer  and  seller  was  being  felt.  This  an- 
tagonism, however,  was  not  sufficiently  'harp  to  lead  to 
war.  It  led  rather  to  a  series  of  peculiar  legislative  acts 
based  upon  the  idea  that  a  country  could  be  punished  by 
withholding  commerce.  The  result  of  this  attitude  was 
the  passage  :>f  the  "Embargo"  and  the  "Noninter- 
course"  acts. 

These  measures  were  based  upon  the  idea  that  the 
trade  of  a  country  is  a  sort  of  isolated  entity  that  can  be 
withheld  and  granted  or  directed  wherever  and  when- 
ever such  action  is  desired.  By  withholding  the  Ameri- 
can trade  JefTersor.  thought  to  punish  England.  The 
"Embargo"  forbade  American  ships  to  leave  their  har- 
bors save  for  coast  trade.      Since  a  large  proportion  of 

'  V.  R.  Phillips.  "Gcoreia  and  Slate  Ri«hts,"  in  .Xnnual  Refwrt 
of  .\mcrican  Historical  .Association,   lyoi,  Vol.  H,  pp.  99-ICX3. 

L 


iftaa 


1 40  SOCIAL   FOKCKS   I\   AMKRICAX   HISTORY 

American  histories  have  been  written  by  persons  with 
Xcw  i:nglan(l  prejudices,  these  histories  nearly  all  de- 
clare the  "Embargo"  to  have  been  a  terrible  failure.  In 
truth  it  paralyzed  many  branches  of  British  industry, 
sent  the  price  of  flour  to  S19  a  barrel  in  England,  caused 
great  petitions  to  be  sent  to  Parliament  begging  for  relief, 
and,  linally,  actually  accomi)lished  the  object  for  which  it 
was  laid,  —  secured  the  repeal  of  the  "Orders  in  Council," 
even  though  the  news  of  that  repeal  came  too  late  to 
avert  war.' 

During  the  war  the  Xew  England  merchants  carried 
their  opposition  to  the  farthest  point  possible  without 
taking  up  actual  hostilities  against  the  national  gtjvern- 
ment.  They  advocated  secession,  refused  to  subscribe 
to  the  national  loan,  encouraged  their  militia  to  rebel 
against  orders  of  the  national  government,  sent  large 
sums  of  specie  to  Canada  for  British  drafts,  supplied 
food  to  the  British  armies  and  ship.-,,  and  in  general  did 
everything  that  would  bring  a  profit  and  injure  the 
national  government.' 

This  war  has  also  been  called  "The  Second  War  for 
Independence."  There  is  more  than  a  litde  justice  in 
the  name.  But  that  in(lei)endence  was  not  gained  at 
Lundy's  Lane,  or  Xew  Orleans,  b\-  Perry  on  Lake  Erie 
or  by  the  victory  of  the  Conslitulion  over  the  Giicrriere. 
That  independence  came  through  developments  in  a 
wholly  different  field.  It  was  a  result  of  the  industrial 
transfi)rmation  wrought  by  the  war. 

'  McM.isiiT,  "  History  of  the  IVopk-  of  the  United  .States,"  Vol.  IV, 
pp.  1-2. 

M{al)(()(k.  "Rise  of  Amirican  N'ation.ility."  pp.  i56-i<;8:  newey, 
•'linaiuial  Hisitiry  of  the  United  Stales,"  p.  1.53. 


i     i 


Tin;    UIKTII    OF   Tin.    l.\Cl(;RV    vVSTI.M  147 

The  most  im{)ortant  event  of  the  period  was  the  birth 
of  a  royal  heir,  the  hist  of  the  Ion-  Hne  of  ruHn-  ehis>es 
that  have  dominated  society  .^ime  the  ai)i)earanee  of 
l.rivate  i)roi)erty.  This  hist  prince  of  tlie  h'ne  of  class 
rule  was  the  machine-owninj,'  capitalist  ch;>s.  The 
United  States  census  of  1900  is  authority  f,,r  the  state- 
ment that  "the  factory  system  obtained  its  lirst  foothold 
in  the  United  States  durin<;  the  period  of  the  Kmbar^'o 
n<i  the  War  of  1S12."  To  be  sure,  this  same  authority 
a>sures  us  that, 

"The  manufacture  of  cotton  and  wool  passed  rapidly 
from  the  household  to  the  nu'll.  but  the  method,  of  ihl 
mestic  and  nei-^hborhood  industry  continued  to  pre- 
dcjminate.  even  in  these  industries  down  to,  and  includ- 
ing, th.  decade  between  1S20  and  1S30;  and  it  was  not 
until  about  1.S40  that  the  factory  method  of  manufacture 
extended  itself  widely  to  miscellaneous  industries,  and 
bef,'an  rapidly  to  force  from  the  market  the  handmade 
commodities  with  wliich  every  community  had  hitherto 
sui)plied  itself." 

In  spile  of  the  fact  that  the  factory  industry  had  been 
strugglinfT  f„r  a  f(X)thold  since  the  beginning  of  the  cen- 
tury, and  that  much  boasting  had  been  made  of  the  e.xtent 
to  which  manufacturing  was  carried  on.  the  opening  of 
the  war  saw  the  country  in  such  a  dei)endent  condition 
that  the  Secretary  of  the  Interior  begged  that  the  Em- 
bargo be  raised  temporarily  in  order  that  the  government 
might  obtain  the  woolen  blankets  that  were  required  in 
the  Indian  trade,  since  these  could  not  be  i)roduced  in 
the  United  States. 

■ :-  ..:a::^ui>i\  to  >tiniulatc  manuidClures. 

The   purchase   of   large   quantities   of   uniform   articles 


fe-^r- 


\^6 


MKIAL   FOkCLS   IN    AMLklCAN   IlISTURV 


favors  the  factory  rather  than  the  household  producer. 
Government  specitications  fre(iuently  provided  that  the 
goods  must  be  of  American  manufacture.  With  no 
foreign  (ompetition,  a  limited  number  of  domestic  pro- 
ducers, and  production  inadecjuate  to  demand,  factories 
yielded  several  hundred  per  cent  profit. 

As  had  been  the  case  in  Europe,  the  mercantile  cap- 
italists had  accumulated  the  capital  for  the  establishment 
of  the  factory  system.  Woodrow  Wilson  notes  that, 
"'i'he  very  shipowners  of  the  trading  ports  had  in  many 
instances  sold  their  craft  and  put  their  caj^ital  into  the 
manufacture  of  such  things  as  were  most  immediately 
needed  for  the  home  market."  ' 

Another  law  of  historical  evolution  is  illustrated  in  the 
way  that  the  rising  social  class  found  expression  in  the 
social  consciousness.  Every  efTort  was  made  to  encour- 
age manufactures.  Societies  were  formed,  premiums 
ofTered,  bounties  paid,  tax  exemi)tions  granted,  and  every 
possible  means  for  the  fostering  of  manufactures  was  put 
into  operation. 

The  most  strenuous  efTorts  were  niiide  to  entice  for- 
eign artisans  to  America.  All  their  effects  were  exempt 
from  duty.  Pennsylvania  hasli-ned  to  grant  them  es- 
pecial privileges  of  citizenship.  Man}-  K-gislatures  passed 
re>olutions  pledging  their  members  to  wear  only  home- 
made goods.  To  encourage  the  woolen  industry,  bounties 
were  ofTered  for  th*'  importation  of  merino  sheep,  and 
iennsylvania  taxed  dogs  tt)  raise  money  with  which  to 
import  rams  of  this  famous  breed. 


'  "Historyof  thf  Amcriian  I\'ii|ilr."  \', 

"  A«     \ _.    ..f    .1...    I--:.     I    f.    .  .-     > 

Matthew  Carey,  "Xtw  Olive  Branch, "  Chap.  V 


III,  !>.  .'40;  T).  R.  Warden, 
ri^a  "   (iSicj),  pp.  262   263; 


TUL   BIRTH  OF   THI::   FACTURV   SVSTKM 


149 


Manuf.icturcs  could  not  fail  lo  llourish  under  such 
conditions.  In  the  production  of  cotton  there  were  87 
mills  in  181 1  operating  80,000  spindles  and  producing 
2,880,000  pounds  of  yarn,  with  4000  employees.  By  1815 
there  were  half  a  million  spindles  running,  with  76,000 
employees,  working  up  27,000,000  pounds  of  raw  cotton. 
The  iron  industry  developed  to  the  point  where  it  lacked 
but  3000  tons  of  suj>plying  the  whole  country.  It  is 
worthy  of  note  that  it  now  began  to  center  around  Pitts- 
burg. Earthenware,  glass,  cordage,  and  all  manner  of 
wooden  ware  manufactures  shot  up  into  prominence. 

The  number  of  patents  rapidly  increased.  The  first 
complete  mill  for  the  production  of  cotton  cloth  was  set 
up  by  Francis  C.  Lowell  at  Waltham,  Ma.ssachusetts, 
in  181 5.  Elkanah  Cobb,  of  Vermont,  invented  a  ma- 
chine for  weaving  blankets  that  did  the  work  of  several 
men. 

Soon  the  manufacturing  capitalist  began  to  develop 
even  more  clearly  the  outlines  of  a  definite  class  con- 
sciousness. A'ihs'  Weekly  Register,  the  great  organ 
of  the  manufacturers  during  the  ne.xt  forty  years,  was 
started  in  Baltimore,  September,  181 1.  From  the  begin- 
ning it  was  an  active  defender  of  protective  tarilTs.  In 
iSigwe  hear  it  voicing  the  jealousy  of  the  manufacturers 
and  shipowners  for  the  favor  of  the  national  government. 

One  of  the  memorials  sent  by  the  manufacturers  to 
Congress  at  this  time  makes  a  suggestive  comj)laint  and 
explanation  in  these  words : '  — 

"The  fostering  care  bestowed  on  commerce  —  the 
various  statutes  enacted  in  its  favor  —  the  e.xpense 
inrurn'f!    fisr    that   purpose  —  the   complete   protection 

•  Niles'  RtgisUr,  July  17,  iSu),  p.  351. 


I 


Ji^ 


t^-^A:-.^* 


150  .SOCIAL   FORCES   I\   AMERICAN'    HISTORY 

it  has  experiVncc'd,  form  a  most  striking  contrast  with 
the  situation  of  manufactures,  and  the  sacrilice  of  those 
intere>le(i  in  them.  .  .  .  There  is  but  one  way  to 
account  for  the  care  bestowed  on  the  commercial' and 
the  ne^riect  of  the  manufacturing  interests.  The  former 
has  at  all  times  been  well  represented  in  Congress  and 
the  latter,  never." 

The  period  immediately  succeeding  the  war  came 
near  to  strangling  the  infant  manufacturing  industry 
in  the  cradle.  As  had  been  the  case  at  the  close  of  the 
Revolution,  I-:uroi)ean  and  especially  British  manu- 
facturers i)oured  a  flood  of  goods  ui)<)n  the  American 
market.  They  could  the  more  easily  do  this  since  the 
Napoleonic  wars  ended  with  the  battle  of  Waterloo  in 
1815.  Rut  the  whole  fabric  of  American  society  was 
changing,  and  in  that  change  the  factory  system  was  to 
llnd  new  strength  and  grow  until  it  became  the  dominant 
factor  in  that  society. 


CHAPTER  XIV 


CHANGING  INTERESTS 


In  the  twenty  years  immediately  following  the  War 
of  1812  forces  were  evolving,  institutions  arising  and 
changing,  centers  of  social  gravity  shifting,  and  deep 
basic  movements  of  various  sorts  taking  i)Iace  that  have 
had  the  most  lasting  effects  upon  the  whole  structure 
of  American  life. 

It  was  essentially  a  time  of  realignment  of  interests, 
and  of  changes  in  social  attitude. 

America  had  hitherto  looked  eastward  across  the 
Atlantic.  Sometimes  it  looked  with  anger,  but  always 
with  interest,  and  its  problems  were  entangled  with 
those  of  the  older  continent.  Public  questions  turned 
on  points  located,  in  part  at  least,  beyond  the  national 
boundaries.  The  dominant  economic  activity,  aside 
from  agriculture,  had  been  commerce,  and  commerce 
is  always  concerned  with  external  afTairs.  The  in- 
dustrial, social,  and  political  upheavals  that  had 
taken  place  in  Europe  during  the  early  years  of  the 
American  Republic  were  such  as  to  attract  attention. 
The  French  Revolution  and  the  Napoleonic  wars  were 
dramas  that  compelled  the  attention  of  the  world. 

After  the  War  of  181 2  the  American  social  mind 
became  introsnprtivp.  FTf'nf^pff.rfh  \t  wo'i  nr-.t  in  Vm> 
concerned  primarily  with  treaties,  commercial  bounties, 

»5i 


• 

1 

1 

1 5-'  SOCIAL   FOKCKS    I.\   AMKklCAN    HISTORY 

imi)r(->smcnt,  embargoes,  and  matters  of  the  open  sea 
and  distant  lands,  hut  with  turni)ikes  and  canals,  tariffs 
and  manufactures,  i)!il)h'c  lands,  (urrency,  hanks,  crises, 
poverty,  state  sovereignty,  and  chattel  slavery.' 

It  was  not  alone  that  commerce  was  declining  and 
manufactures  growing.  The  peo{)Ie  themselves  were 
leaving  the  .seal^oard  and  setting  their  fates  toward  the 
West.  The  drihhling  streams  of  immigrants  that  had 
been  pressing  through  the  clefts  in  the  Alleghenies  now 
became  a  mighty  (lood  that  poured  over  and  around  these 
barriers  and  swei)t  down  upon  the  ^'  Issippi  Valley. 
Between  1815  and  1S20  western  Pennsylvania,  with 
Kentucky,  Tenne.s.see,  and  southern  Ohio  and  Indiana, 
were  filled  with  a  hustling  i)opuIation. 

During  this  period  the  people  of  the  Ohio  Valley 
reached  the  small  farmer  stage.  Since  each  farm  was 
a  small  household  manufacturing  establishment,  and 
especially  as  the  beginnings  of  the  factory  system  were 
also  apparent,  this  locality  developed  a  protectionist 
sentiment.  Its  most  pressing  need,  however,  was  for 
better    transportation   facilities.     It    is   not    surprising, 

'  noston  V.i„krr.  Xov.  4.  ,810  :  "The  time  appears  to  Ik:  fast  ap- 
proaehinK  when  an  im[K,rtant  chanRe  must  take  place  in  the  situation 
of  the  people  of  this  country.  The  unexampled  success  of  American 
commerce  durinR  the  late  troubled  state  of  Kurope  appears  to  have  fairly 
intoxicated  the  population  of  this  country.  Kvcrv  newspaper  from 
X.  Orleans  to  Maine  was  loud  in  advocating  the  commercial  policy 
but  the  tranquillity  of  Europe  has  wrouRht  such  a  change  in  the  commer- 
cial world  that  the  Americans  begin  to  sec  and  feel  that  it  is  not  on  com- 
niercc  alone  they  must  depend.  New  evidence  arises  every  day  to  prove 
that  we  cannot  entirely  be  a  commercial  people.  The  prosperitv  of 
the  U.S.  IS  bottomed  upon  the  success  of  agriculture  and  manufacture-: 
which  begin  to  excite  interest  in  pioportion  to  the  decline  of  commerce.'' 

..'  "Vvx-Vx-    '  '---■y  <■''   -•■•--!  .v-rvi.v,     A!;a,:lk  Monthh; 

\  ol.  LXXIX,  ().  23 ;   F .  J.  Turner,  Atkntic  Monthly,  Jan.,  1903,  p.  84. ' 


%. 


■H 


CHANCINd    I\Tl.KI>rS 


^D.S 


then-fore,  that  IicT..y  Clay,  "the  fa'  ;er  of  the  .Xmerican 
protective  system"  and  the  prea'  champion  of  internal 
improvements.  >houIil  have  he-n  sent  to  Congress  from 
Keritucky  during  this  period. 

The  South  was  also  undergoing  an  industrial  transfor- 
mation. Here  it  was  not  the  supplanting  of  one  form 
of  industry  by  another  so  much  as  the  rise  of  a  new  cr.  ;> 
that  was  working  the  change.  The  invention  of  the 
cotton  gin  had  made  the  culti  tion  of  upland  cotton 
profitable,  and  as  a  consequem  e  the  com[)etilion  of 
Western  lands  was  ruining  the  agriculture  of  the  se;i- 
board.  The  "  X'irginia  ( Vnasty,"  c()m[M)Scd  of  the  \Va>h- 
ingtons.  Madisons,  Jefeions.  Randolphs,  and  others, 
whose  families  c;ime  across  the  Atlantic  at  the  time  of 
the  Commonwe.ilth  in  England,  were  being  impoverished, 
and  losing  their  inuustrial  power,  were  being  relegated 
to  the  rear  iwlltically. 

So  complete  was  the  industrial  decline  of  \'irginia  that 
one  observer  declared  th  it  the  larger  plantations  were 
nearly  all  plunging  their  owners  deeper  and  deeper  into 
debt.  In  1830  John  Randolph  prophe>ied  that  the 
time  was  coming  when  the  masters  would  run  away 
from  the  slaves  and  be  advertised  for  in  the  public 
papers. •  It  was  during  this  period  that  Thomas  JefTer- 
son  became  so  impoverished  that  public  subscri[)tions 
were  raised  to  relieve  him  and  Congress  purchased  hi- 
library,  a  transaction  from  which  sprung  the  present 
magnificent  Congressional  Library .'^ 

It  is  not  surprising  that  such  an  industrial  condition 
should  have  given  rise  to  consider  ble  antislavery  sea- 

«  FrrHcrick  J.  Turner.  "The  Ris<-  of  the  New  West."  p.  SQ. 

» Thomas  Watson,  "  Life  and  Times  oi  Thomas  Jefferson,"  p.  So» 


-  ii 


^^^S^sl^ 


s^^^^Etsn^^^s^ 


.":-W!.i^J^ 


154  ^<KI\I.    loRcrs    IN-    A.MrKIC.W    HIM(,KV 

<;"'^nf  in  \irKinia.  This  scnlim.-nt  was  of  short  dura- 
tion. In  an.»thcT  Koncration  the-  upland  cotton  j.lantcrs 
and  the  Louisiana  su^.ir  raisers  were  demanding  slaves 
in  such  numlurs  that  their  production  in  \irginia  became 
a  prolitaljle  inchistry. 

In  New  Kngland,  ahhoufih  the  old  fishing'  and  mer- 
cantile rulers  were  passing  ofT  the  stage,  many  of  the 
same  fam.hes  su.reede.l  to  the  line  of  power  hv  investing 
the.r  capital  ir,  the  rapidly  growing  manulacturcs 
^    Intil  tins  {HTiod  the  merchants  and  the  commercial 
mterests    in    alliance   with    the   Southern  planters,   had 
controlled    the    national    government.      The    manufac- 
turers who  were  struggling  for  influence  in  that  govern- 
ment were  quick  to  i,oint  out  the  extent  to  which  the 
nafon  had  used  its  machinery  for  the  benelit  of  com- 
mercc^     Matthew  Carey,   the  great  spokesman  of  the 
manufacturmg  interests,  places  upon  the  title  pages  of 
his    Lssays  on  Political  K conomy  "  a  table  comparing  the 
treatment     accorded     to     agriculture,    commerce,    and 
manufactures.     In  his  '"Xew  Olive  Branch"  he  points 
out  that.  ' 

"The  second  act  passed  by  the  first  Congress  contained 
clauses  which  secured  to  the  tonnage  of  our  merchants 
a  monopoly  of  the  whole  China  trade  -  and  gave  them 
paramount  advantages  in  all  other  foreign  trade.  . 

"The  same  act  gave  our  merchants  an  additional  deci- 
sive advantage  by  allowing  a  discount  of  ten  per  cent 
on  the  duties  upon  goods  imported  in  American  vessels 
_  1  he  tonnage  duty  upon  vessels  belonging  to  American 
citizens  was  fixed  at  six  cents  a  ton;  on  American-built 
vessels,  owned  wholly  or  in  part  bv  foreigners,   thirty 

cents-    nnJ  on    'II  .-<i c^    •  '.       . .  ^ 

'  '"=  •"■^•''-'  '-reign  vc■s^ei^.  iiliy  cents. 


CHAN(;iN(;    INTI.K ISTS 


155 


"In  order  to  exclude  forei^'n  vessels  from  the  roasting 
trade  they  were  subjected  to  a  tonnage  duly  of  fifty 
cents  per  ton  for  every  voyage;  whereas  our  ves>els  paid 
but  six  cents,  and  only  once  a  year." 

The  methods  by  which  these  favors  for  the  mercantile 
interest  were  secured  arc  very  clearly  understood  b> 
Carey,  and  he  instances  them  as  an  example  that  must 
be  followed  by  the  manufacturers  if  they  are  to  have  the 
use  of  the  government  to  defend  their  interests. 

"It  is  not  difficult  to  account  for  this  parental  care," 
he  tells  us.  "The  mercantile  interest  was  ably  repre- 
sented in  the  first  Congress.  It  made  a  judicious  selec- 
tion of  candidates,  and  carried  the  elections  pretty  gen- 
erally in  the  seaport  towns.  .  .  .  The  representation 
in  Congress  was  divided  almost  wholly  between  farmers, 
planters,  and  merchants.  The  manufacturing  interest 
was,  I  believe,  unrepresented  ;  or,  if  it  had  a  few  repre- 
sentatives, they  were  not  distinguished  men,  and  had 
little  or  no  influence.  It  shared  the  melancholy  fate  of 
all  unrepresented  bodies  in  all  ages  and  all  nations." 

As  fond  parents  are  prone  to  jjredict  brilliant  futures 
for  each  new-born  infant,  so  at  the  time  of  the  birth  of 
the  factory  system  the  most  extravagant  blessings  were 
expected  from  its  development.  Even  the  columns  of 
the  Annals  of  Congress  break  into  peans  of  promise, 
singing  of  the  blessings  to  be  brought  with  the  new 
machinery.  In  a  report  submitted  by  Tench  Coxe  in 
1814  he  congratulates  the  workers  of  America  on  "the 
variety  of  ingenious  mechanisms,  processes,  and  devices, 
which,  while  they  save  labor,  manifestly  exempt  them 
from  the  deleterious  modes  of  the  old  manufacturing 
system."    He   proceeds    in    a  strain  that  has  a   queer 


;i:ri 


>4^S:i^:-*v*i' 


^M^, 


i=;6 


SOCIAL    lOKCIS    IN    AMF.RICAX    HISTORY 


sound   in  the   ears  ot    those  who  have  seen  the  effects 
actually  produced   hy  these  machines:  — 

"Women,  relieved  in  a  considerable  deforce  from  their 
former  cmjjloyments  as  cardeis,  weavers,  and  fullers  by 
hand,  occasionally  turn  to  the  occupation  of  the  weaver, 
with  improv-ed  machinery  and  instruments,  which  abrid<;e 
and  soften  the  labor,  while  the  male  weavers  employ 
themsf.-lves  in  superintendence,  instruction,  superior 
or  other  operations,  and  promote  their  health  by  occa- 
sional attention  to  gardening,  agriculture,  and  the  clear- 
ing and  improvement  of  their  farms.  .  .  .  These  won- 
derful machines,  working  as  if  they  were  animated  beings, 
endowed  with  all  the  talents  of  their  inventors,  laboring 
with  organs  that  never  tire,  and  subject  to  no  expense 
of  food,  or  bed,  or  raiment,  or  dwelling,  may  be  justly 
considered  as  an  equivalent  to  an  immense  body  of 
manufacturing  recruits  enlisted  in  the  service  of'  tr.e 
country."  ' 

Unfortunately  for  this  idyllic  picti're  the  machines 
became  instruments  of  private  jirofit  in  the  hands  of  a 
class  of  non-workers  who  soon  became  a  pv)wer  in  the 
national  government,  while  those  who  oi>erated  these 
instruments  were  doomed  to  exploitation,  and,  to  para- 
phrase the  words  of  Matthew  Carey,  quoted  above, 
"shared  the  melancholy  fate  of  all  unrepresented  bodies 
in  all  ages  and  all  nations." 

While  the  old  ruling  class  in  the  South  and  in  New 
England  was  ucing  disrupted  by  the  disintegration  of 
its  economic  base,  the  new  economic  class  of  manufac- 
turers was  gaining  political  power  and  influence.  By 
181O  it  was  able  to  carry  through  Congress  a  tariff  law 
'  .^.nnals,  1814,  Appendix,  pp.  2O01-2602. 


CnAN(;iN(]   INTERESTS 


157 


with  fairly  stront  .ctcctivc  features.  This  measure 
was  carried  by  t;  t)tes  of  ihe  Midtlle  and  Western 
states,  with  some  h^  p  from  the  South.  The  commercial 
interests  of  New  England,  led  by  Daniel  Webster,  a 
newcomer  in  Congress,  olTered  the  strongest  opposition. 
John  C.  Calhoun  of  South  Carolina  was  a  supporter 
of  the  tariff.  Changing  economic  interests  later  reversed 
the  positions  of  these  two  antagonists. 

The  :)OUth  still  hoped  that  it  might  become  the  scat 
of  manufactures,  or  at  least  that  it  would  find  in  New 
England  cotton  factories  a  belter  market  than  abroad; 
while  the  fear  of  foreign  competition  in  the  raiding  of 
cotton  led  Southern  i)lanters  to  desire  a  market  in  which 
they  might  hope  to  have  at  least  a  great  advantage.' 

Louisiana  was  beginning  to  produce  sugar,  and  the 
interests  of  the  producers  of  this  crop  led  her  represen- 
tatives in  Congress  to  join  with  the  protectionists. 

The  decline  of  Xevv  England  commercial  and  Southern 
tobacco  interests  was  transferring  the  center  of  [wwer 
to  the  Middle  and  Western  states.  Pennsylvania  was 
now  becoming  the  "Keystone  state"  in  more  than  loca- 
tion. Although  it  had  not  yet  obtained  the  domination 
in  manufacturing  that  it  was  later  to  possess,  it  was 
advancing  toward  that  position.  Its  most  strikingly 
strategic  position  at  this  time  was  due  to  its  possession 
of  the  principal  gateway  to  the  West.  Hostile  Indians 
still  occunicd  northern  Ohio  and  Indiana,  and  the  great 
highway  of  the  Hudson,  Mohawk,  and  Genesee  rivers 
was  not  being  used. 


/I 

I  '1 


'  Kdw.ird  Stanwood,  "American  Tariff  Controversies  'n  the  Nine- 
teenth Century,"  p.  i<yi ;  C.  K.  Hahnu  k.  "The  Rise  of  .\merican  Nation- 
ality," p.  160;   AiV«'  Register,  Vol.  XXVT,  p.  n,^. 


158  SOCIAL   FORCES   IN   AMERICAN'   HISTORY 

The  Ohio  River  was  the  main  artery  of  trade  and 
travel.     Until  after  1830  there  was  to  he  little  settle- 
ment west  of   the  Alle^'henies  that  was  not  dependent 
upon  this  river.     A  map  of  poi)ulation  prior  to  that  time 
shows  few  important  settlements  in  that  region  border- 
ing on  the  (ireat  Lakes  that  is  now  almost  dominant  in 
national   life.     The  principal    cities  of   the   West   were 
Cincinnati,   Marietta,   Louisville,  and  St.   Louis.     This 
trans-Allegheny  empire  had  grown  to  great  importance 
in  American  life.     Its  trade  was  determining  the  growth 
of  seaboard  states  and  citie:;  and  the  liirection  of  future 
national   development.      Three   cities    on    the  Atlantic 
coast  were  contending  for  the  control  of  the  Western 
trade.     These  were  Baltimore,   Phila(leli)hia.  and  New 
York.     The  weapons  with  which  cities  hght  for  trade 
arc   usually   improved    systems   of    transportation.     At 
this  time  inland  transportation  was  by  canals  and  turn- 
pikes.    There  was  a  perfect  craze  for  the  construction 
of    these    forms   of   trade   highways.'     New   York    was 
planning  the  Erie  Canal.     Baltimore  had  succeeded  in 
inducing  Congress  to  undertake  the  Cumberland  Road,  a 
great  national  highway  to  pass  through  Cumberland  Gap, 
near  Wheeling.  West  \'irginia,  and  on  into  and  across 
Ohio,  Indiana,  and  Illinois.*    Philadelphia  was  developing 
a  system  of  internal   canals  with  state  help,  to  secure 
the  ad\-antage  possessed  by  the  fact  that  *he  principal 
gate  for  Western  trade  was  already  located  at  Pittsburg. 

•  For  a  di'srription  of  the  manner  in  whirh  the  War  of  181:,  with  the 
Fml.ari;o  anfl  l.Ku  ka.lc,  had  .ompollcd  the  development  of  inlan.i  trans- 
|)orlation,  and  es|>e,ially  of  iradc  l,y  wagons,  see  Me. Master.  "History 
of  the  People  of  the  fnilnl  Stales."  Vu!    l\\  pp.  218- .'ji. 

»  I.  I..  Rin.L;walt,  "  Hevelopment  of  I'ranbjwnalion  Systems  in  the 
L'nitfd  States,"  p.  21. 


CHANGING   INTKRESTS 


159 


There  was  still  another  contestant  for  the  trade  of 
this  Western  territory.  Xew  Orleans,  with  all  the  ad- 
vantage of  a  never  ceasing  river  current  Howing  from 
the  source  of  the  trade  past  her  doors,  was  the  natural 
outlet  for  many  of  the  products  of  this  district.  In 
181 1,  by  the  launching  of  the  first  steamboat  on  Wt .  lern 
waters  at  Pittsburg,  the  advantage  of  the  current  was 
largely  lost,  and  the  whole  aspect  of  Western  travel 
began  to  i)e  transformed.' 

One  of  the  important  sources  of  Western  wealth  during 
this  period  was  the  fur  trade.  The  American  Fur  Com- 
pany, controlled  by  John  Jacob  Astor.  was  chartered  in 
1808,  and  within  a  dozen  years  had  bri.inie  a  power 
throughout  the  upper  Mississii)pi  \'alky  and  e\en  on  the 
Pacific  coast.  The  explorations  of  Lcwir,  and  Clark  and 
Pike  opened  up  rich  fur  territory,  wtiich  was  exploited 
until  settlement  invaded  its  sources  a  generation  later. 

Owing  to  the  difTiculties  of  transportation,  there  was 
no  strong  national  feeling.  It  was  not  alone  Xew  Eng- 
land that  threatened  to  secede.  The  Mississippi  Valley 
was  filled  with  intrigue  and  with  separatist  sentiment. 
The  ties  that  bound  the  interests  of  this  locahty  with 
(he  Atlantic  coast  were  few  and  tenuous,  and  were  only 
tightened  when  the  national  government  used  its  power 
to  protect  Western  interests  through  internal  improve- 
ments and  a  protective  taritT,  and  later  when  the  rail- 
road, steamship,  and  canal  systems  laid  a  firm  basis  for 
national  unitv. 


'  I..  J.  Risho[),  "History  of  American  Manufat  turi'S,"  \'ol.  II,  p.  173  ; 
Timothy  Flint,  'Condensed  Geography  and  History  of  the  Western 
Stales,"  Vol.  II,  pp.  228-229. 


CHAPTER  XV 


Tire   FIRST   CRISIS  —  1819 


TiiF  industrial  boom  (reated  hy  the  Embargo,  the 
war,  western  land  spei.  ulalion,  and  the  canal  and  turn- 
pike enthusiasm,  and  fostered  by  the  tariff  of  1816  gave 
the  infant  capitalism  severe  internal  pains,  climaxing 
in  the  first  crisis  in  i8ig. 

There  were  as  many  explanations  of  the  cause  of  this 
crisis  as  of  any  of  the  subsequent  ones.  Senator  Thomas 
H.  Benton  was  positive  that  it  was  caused  by  the  new 
United  States  Bank,  that  had  been  chartered  in  1816.' 
Many  others  were  sure  it  was  caused  by  the  taritT  enacted 
in  the  same  year.  It  was  really  but  the  American  pha.se 
of  an  almost  universal  collapse  of  industry  and  finance 
following  the  readjustments  attendant  upon  the  close 
of  the  .\apoleonic  wars.  Unfavorable  weather  in 
Europe  had  almost  ruined  the  crops  of  1816  18 17  in 
England,  Eran(  e,  and  Italy,  adding  a  catastrophe  of 
nature  to  an  industrial  collapse. ^ 

Within  the  United  States  the  period  immediately 
preceding  tlie  cri.^is  had  been  one  of  feverish  specula- 
tion.3     Although  there    was    still    a    vast    quantity   of 

'  Tliom.is  H.  liciit.in,  "Thirty  Years  in  the  I'nili.i  Stales  Striate," 
InlrclihiiuM.  |,|,  :  ,.■  William  H.  Coime,  "A  Short  Hi.t.iry  of  Paper 
Mon.>  aiiil  Mankiiii:  in  the  I'nited  Slates,"  |)|).  55-^5. 

I!.    i>e   Ciil.liins,  "Kionomie  and   In(iu>irial  Progress  Century,"   in 
\iiulienlh  Century  Series,  \'ol.  W,  [)().   loS-ioy. 
'.V//o'  AVi'n/fT,  June  i  .\  iSu>.  p.  .'57. 

160 


TIIK    FIRST 

CRISIS 

—  iSlQ 

i6i 

"no-rent" 

lund,'  there 

had  been  a  wild  strugi^le 

to  secure 

possession 

of  western 

hinds 

.  with  i 

ill  the  attendant  plie- 

noniena  of 

•inrl   mini'i^ 

exces>ively 

iil'itiMn   fh.it 

high 

prices, 

■n(>  </>  f 

iraudulent  ] 

1  mi  III  r    in    lit 

)urchases 
*> 

The  new  manufa  tures  also  olTcred  a  favorable  ground 
for  ^peculation.  Joint  stock  conij)anies,  as  corporations 
were  still  called,  had  been  organi/id  in  great  numbers, 
and  tlicir  slock  tloated  u|)  ii  tlu  first  battalion  nf  that 
immense  army  of  "innocent  purchaser^"  who  ha\e  bien 
abstirbing  similar  issues  ever  since.  These  >ame  trusting 
individuals  were  j^'iven  an  opportunity  to  ab.M)rb  a  large 
cjuantity  of  stock  in  canal  an''  turnpike  companies, 
many  of  wh'ch  went  bankrupt  during  the  ensuing  crisis. 

The  whole  situation  was  greatly  aggravated  by  a 
state  of  llnancial  chaos.  The  iharter  of  the  t"irst  liank 
of  the  United  States,  the  one  championed  by  Hamilton, 
had  expired  in  i8i  r.  At  once  a  multitude  of  private  and 
stale  banks  sprung  up.  Fre(iuently  the  principal  asset 
of  these  banks  consisted  of  a  set  of  plates  from  which 
to   print    paper    money.     This    money    was    loaned    to 

'Warden,  "Statistiial,  Political,  and  Ilislorital  Adount  of  the 
fniti'd  Stales"  (iSwj),  Intnxliu  lion,  j>  .xliv  :  "Rent  exists  iii  a  mtv 
limited  dej,'rce  in  the  I'nitcd  St  ts.  .  .  .  I'.xcept  in  the  imnu-diate 
neii;hlK)rhiK)(i  of  ^rcat  towns,  there  is  very  little  land  let  at  lease'  in  the 
United  States,  the  priie  heins  so  low  th.it  any  |)erse)n  wht)  has  the  ia[)ilal 
necessjiry  to  enter  u|Kin  the  business  of  f.irniinf;  t'inds  the  purchase  money 
of  the  land  a  \er\-  small  addition  to  his  outlay," 

'  C.  F.  Kmerii  k,  "  The  Credit  System  and  the  Puiilii  I»oinaiii  "  |i  <> 
it  U(/.  "The  ye.ir  1S14  witne>scd  the  lie;:innini;  of  a  ),'riat  im  r(a>e  in 
the  sales  of  public-  lands.  In  tliat  >iar  .S(i4,vCi  acres  were  sohl,  or 
24;,  170  more  than  in  an>'  year  sinie  171/1  Uurini;  the  s'Kceedinj;  five 
\e.irs  the  s.iles  a^sunu'd  \asl  pro|M)rtions,  in  isio  reat  hint;  5,.t7^'i4S 
acres.  These  limires  were  not  -.urp.issi'd  until  18(5,"  Hint,  "dcoj?- 
ra|ihy  and  Histor\  of  Western  States,"  pp.  ^48-350. 


l62 


SOCIAL    FOkCKS   I.\   AMKKICAN    HISTORY 


prosfK'ctivr  purdiuMTs  of  |;in<l,  tlif  h;ink  l)eing  secured 
by  ;i  mortgage  on  the  hind. 

(\il)italism.  scarcely  in  existence,  (ould  hardly  he 
expected  to  evolve  any  elYective  sy.>teni  of  banking.  It 
fell  hack  upon  individual  initiative,  and  turned  over  the 
function  of  printing  money  to  whatever  hand  of  clever 
men  niii^ht  ml  together  and  secure  the  easily  obtained 
sane  lion  of  some  >late  f^overnment.  The  Constitution 
forbids  any  st.ite  to  "emit  bills  of  credit."  but  by  some 
strange  t\vi.-,lin'r  of  thi.^  phrase  it  was  held  that  the  states 
Were  free  to  confer  this  right  upiin  individu.ds.  It  would 
bi'  impossible  to  exaggerate  the  carnival  of  swindling 
that  followed.  Nearly  every  legisl.iture  was  besieged 
with  applicants  for  bank  charters,  and  those  best  able 
to  inllueiice  such  legislation  were  granted  practically 
unlimited  power  to  [)rint  and  circulate  money. 

Any  sudden  shock  would  tumble  such  a  house  of  cards 
about  the  heads  of  itr>  builders.  The  shock  came  when 
the  second  Bank  of  the  United  States  sought  to  force 
the  restoration  of  specie  payments  that  had  been  sus- 
pended during  the  war.  This  second  bank,  unlike  the 
first  one.  was  owned  largely  outside  of  New  England.' 
For  the  moment  the  Middle  states,  with  their  growing 
manufactures,  and  the  Southern  states,  with  a  profitable 
cotton  croj),  were  more  pros{)erous.  more  directly  inter- 
ested in  and  favored  by  the  national  government,  and 
tlierefore.  more  patriotic  than  the  decaying  commercial 
states  of  \ew  England. 

Once  more  a  note  should  be  made  of  the  attitude  of 
three  men.     John  C\  Calhoun  of  South  Carolina  oi)ened 

'  .MiMaMiT.  "Ilist.iry  of  the  iVo|>!c  of  the  fnited  States,"  \ol.  I\', 
I'P-  .i'J  314. 


TMI-:    FIRST   CRISIS -1S19 


163 


the  debate  in  Coni^Tess  in  support  of  the  bank.  In  this 
he  was  strongly  assisted  by  Henry  Clay  of  Kentucky, 
then  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representatives.  The 
great  oppcjnent  of  the  bill  was  Daniel  Webster  of  Massa- 
tliusetts.'  Each  of  these  men  rellected  a  sectional 
economic  interest  in  this  position.  As  those  interests 
changed,  the  beliefs  and  political  principles  of  these 
men  veered  to  suit  the  changing  wind. 

The  earliest  beginnings  of  this  bank,  that  was  to  be 
such  an  imi)orlant  factor  in  the  linancial,  industrial, 
md  political  life  of  this  country,  were  tainted  with  fraud. 
The  provisions  for  a  paid-in  capital,  which  had  been  a 
part  of  the  law  creating  it.  were  e\aded.  The  first 
subscribers  were  allowed  to  borrow  money  u[)on  their 
stock  with  which  to  purchase  more  slock,  and  so  on  until 
a  most  unsteady  pyramid  was  built  with  no  genuine 
a>sets  at  bottom.-  The  oi)erations  of  the  bank  were 
then  manii)ulated  to  the  benetU  of  the  board  of  directors 
and  stockholders.  Among  the  latter,  it  was  alleged  by 
Xiles,  who  was  by  no  means  an  enemy  of  the  bank, 
were  forty  members  of  Congress.' 

The  scandals  were  so  great  that  a  Congressional  com- 
mittee was  appointed  to  investigate  the  bank,  and  when 
this  committee  reported,  January  16.  iSiq.  the  bank 
slock  fell  from  near  140  (at  which  point  it  had  been 
accepted  as  collateral  for  loans  up  to  almost  its  full 
market  value)  to  93.''  \ct  the  rejx)rt  was  largely  a 
whitewash,  and  its  main  et'fecl  was  to  frighten  the  presi- 
dent of  ihe  bank  into  lleeing  from  the  country.     Three 

'  MrMiister,  loc  cil  ,  Vol.  IV,  pp.  3io-;?ii. 

-'  \\m    H.  (luum.-,  "Hi.siory  ui  Paper  Money  and  HankinK,"  p.  27. 

^  .V;7(v'  Rtjiiskr,  Feb.  27,  i8ig.  *  Gouge,  lu..  cit.,  p.  30. 


164 


SOCIAL   FORCKS    l\    ,\MI:KIC.\.\    IIISTOKY 


years  later  a  report  was  forced  from  the  in>titution  that 
showed  that  il  was  absolutely  bankrupt  at  the  time  of 
the  Congressional  investigation,  and  that  it  had  been 
guilty  of  nearly  all  the  acts  of  crooked  linunce  that  such 
a  still  unsophisticated  age  knew.' 

Immediately  after  the  Congressional  investigation 
and  tlie  flight  of  the  president,  a  new  administration 
realized  that  oidy  the  most  drastic  stt'ps  would  save  tJie 
institution  from  actually  going  through  bankruptcy 
proceedings,  with  the  j)robal;le  criminal  prosecution  of 
its  ollicials.  There  was  an  immediate  restriction  of 
credits,  a  sudden  demand  for  collections,  and  an  insist- 
ence upon  sjK'cie  payments  from  other  banks. 

When  the  Bank  of  the  United  States  refused  to  accept 
the  notes  of  the  insolvent  state  banks,  the  latter  promptly 
failed,  their  securities  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  national 
institution,  and  the  tens  of  thousands  of  dibtors  who  had 
borrowed  this  money  for  land  speculation  and  other 
purposes  had  their  property  taken  iway  by  foreclosure 
of  mortgages. - 

At  once  a  great  "Populistic"  movement  swept  over 
Kentucky,  Illinois,  'rennes>ee,  Indiana,  and  Ohio.  The 
legislature  of  Kentucky  otablislied  a  state  bank,  with 
little  more  than  wind  for  assets,  anil  declared  war  upon 
the  Hank  of  the  United  States.  Maryland,  Tennessee, 
Georgia,  North  Carolina,  Kentucky,  and  Ohio,  all 
cnde.ivored  to  tax  the  branches  of  the  Bank  of  the 
United  States.  But  John  Marshall  was  Chief  Justice 
of  the  Supreme  C()urt,  and  in  the  famous  case  of  Mc- 
CulU)Ugh  vs.  Maryland  the  right  of  the  state  to  tax  the 

'  <i(>uj;c,  !(>r,  (it.,    p.   51, 

■  V.  J.  TuriKT,  'Kibc-  ui  tiiL-  New  Weal,"  pp.  iiO-127. 


TUV.   FIRST   CRISIS   -iSiQ 


I6S 


bank  was  denied.  But  the  frontier  cared  little  for  Su- 
I)reme  Court  decisions,  and  Ohio  proceeded  to  flaunt  the 
decision  and  to  collect  the  tax  by  force  of  arms,  while 
Kentucky  withdrew  the  protection  of  state  laws  from 
the  branches  located  in  that  state.' 

The  revolt  of  the  West  was  not  surprising.  The  bank 
had  obtained  possession  through  mortgages  of  vast 
tracts  of  land,  both  urban  and  rural.  The  suflering 
everywhere  was  intense. 

Thomas  H.  Benton  introduces  his  "Thirty  Years' 
View"  with  this  striking  description  of  the  situation  in 
1820 :  — 

"  The  years  1819  and  1820  were  a  {K'riod  of  gloom  and 
agony.  Xo  money,  either  gold  or  silver:  no  pai)er 
convertible  into  si)ecie :  no  measure  or  standard  of 
value  left  remaining.  The  local  banks  (all  but  those  of 
\cw  England),  after  a  brief  resumption  of  specie  pay- 
ments, again  sank  into  a  state  of  suspension.  The  Bank 
of  the  United  States,  created  as  a  remedy  for  all  these 
evils,  now  at  the  head  of  the  evil,  prostrate  and  helpless, 
with  no  power  left  but  that  of  suing  its  debtors,  and 
selling  their  property,  and  purchasing  it  for  itself  at  its 
own  nominal  price.  Xo  price  for  property  or  produce. 
Xo  sales  but  those  of  the  sheriff  or  marshal.  X"o  {)ur- 
chasers  at  the  execution  sales  but  the  creditor  or  some 
lu)arder  of  money.  Xo  emi)loyment  for  industry  — 
no  demand  for  labor  —  no  sale  for  the  produce  of  the 
farm  no  sound  of  the  hammer  but  that  of  the  auc- 
tioneer knocking  down  property.     Slop  laws  —  property 

'  Frc-dtTick  J.  Turner,  "The  Rise  of  the  New  WVsl."  pp.  1,56140, 
300;  J.  H.  Mc.MaslL-r,  "History  of  tht-  Pt-ople  of  the  United  States," 
\'ol.  I\'.  p|).  4S4-  510;   Horace  White,  ".Money  and  Hanking,"  p.  J85. 


1 06 


.SOCIAL   lOKLI.S   IN    AMI.klCAN    HISTORY 


laws  rt j)lfvin  laws  —  stay  laws  —  loan  ofTu c  laws  — 
thf  intcrvc-iuion  of  the  k^i>lalor  between  the  creditor 
and  debtor :  this  was  the  business  of  lej;i>l.ilion  in  three- 
fourths  of  the  statis  of  the  Union  of  all  South  and 
West  of  New  Mngl.md.  Xo  medium  of  exchange  but 
depreciated  paper:  no  ehaiii^e  even,  but  little  bits  of 
fuul  i)aper,  marked  so  many  cents  and  signed  by  some 
tradesman,  barber,  or  inn-keeper:  exchanges  dcrangeci 
to  the  (  \lent  of  lifty  or  one  hundred  per  cent.  Dis- 
TRKSS  the  universal  cry  of  the  people:  Rklief  the 
universal  demand  thundered  at  the  doors  of  all  legis- 
latures, State  or  Tederal."  ' 

This  process  of  wholesale  exploitation  by  the  bank 
was  one  of  the  steps  by  which  the  capital  necessary  to 
the  establishment  of  the  factory  system  was  gathered 
from  the  multitude  of  small  jiroducers  and  brought 
together  in  the  large  sum>  needed  for  the  introduction 
of  ihis  new  industrial  stage. 

In  .\ugust,  i8i(),  Xilrs'  Rrtiistrr  said.  "There  are 
20,000  jHTsons  daily  seeking  work  in  Philadelphia  —  in 
.New  NOrk  10,000  able-boilied  men  are  said  to  be  wander- 
ing the  street>  looking  for  it.  and  if  we  add  to  them  the 
Women  who  d 'sire  something  to  do.  the  amount  cannot 
be  less  than  20,000  -  in  H.dtimore  there  may  be  about 
10,000  p>  sons  in  unsteady  employment,  or  actually 
suffering  becaUM   they  cannot  get  into  business." 

This  ])anic  seems  to  have  marked  the  beginning  of 
regular  reliif  by  charitable  bodies.  There  had  been 
jilenty  of  misery  before,  but  the  whole  population  had 
been   sw  closely  knit   together   that   charitable  societies 

'  Thomas  II.  Benton,  "Thirty  Years  in  the  United  Slates  Senate," 
p.  5. 


lii^   I 

to 


THi:   FIRST   CRISIS- iHig 


167 


were  seldom  ncnied.  In  1815  Henry  Niles.  the  ((Utor 
anil  publisher  of  .Mies'  Rif^istrr,  t'stimatc*!  that  thtrr 
was  one  pauper  lor  every  250  persons.  He  al>o  states 
that  no  provision  was  made  for  any  saw  for  those  who 
were  disabled  [)hysically,  except  during  a  short  time  in 
the  winter.'  Durinj^  the  winter  of  iSk)  i8jo  soup- 
houses  were  established  in  several  of  the  larger  cities. 
A  liltle  later  a  committee  was  api)ointed  to  investigate 
the  public- charities  of  I'hiladelphia,  ami  its  reiM)rt  reveals 
a  mass  of  misery  among  the  workers  that  foretells  the 
city  slum  of  to-day. 

While  the  national  government  was  being  used  to 
collect  the  last  farthing  from  the  little  farmers  and  half 
starving  wageworkers,  the  same  forces  that  were  utiliz- 
ing that  government  for  debt-collecting  purposes  were 
developing  a  bankruptcy  code  that  should  free  the 
merchant,  banker,  manufacturer,  and  planter  from  such 
of  his  debts  as  he  was  unable  to  pay.  The  governors 
of  Louisiana  and  Rh  )dc  Island  urged  the  enactment  of 
bankruptcy  legislation  in  their  annual  messages  in  1816. 
Several  states  already  had  enacted  such  laws,  although 
the  national  government  had  re{)eale(l  the  one  enacted 
in  1800,  after  an  existence  of  only  three  years.  These 
laws  were  C|uickly  taken  advantage  of,  and  Nile>  in  i8i(> 
remarks  that  "Twenty  or  thirty  years  ago  if  a  man  failed 
for  $100,000,  people  talked  about  it  as  something  marvel- 
ous. But  now,"  he  adds,  "it  is  not  considered  decent 
for  a  man  to  break  for  less  than  Sioo,ooo,  and  if  a  [)er- 
son  would  be  thought  a  rcspcclablc  bankrupt,  he  ought  to 
owe  two  or  three  hundred  thousand  more." 

A  New  York  judge  before  whom  some  of  these  bank- 

*  files'  Register,  IX,  p.  2^2. 


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^S  "6)   288  -  5989  -  Fq, 


262 


SOCIAL  FORCES  IN  AMERICAN  HISTORY 


candidate  was  ever  a  better  representative  of  his  party 
than  Lincoln.  He  repeatedly  and  er  )ha*.ically  denied 
any  intention  of  interfering  with  slavery  in  the  South. 
In  his  debate  with  Douglas  he  said  :  "We  have  no  right 
at  all  to  disturb  it  in  the  states  where  it  exists,  and  we 
profess  that  we  have  no  more  inclination  to  disturb  it 
than  we  have  the  right  to  do  it."  In  his  first  inaugural 
he  declared  his  purpose  to  be  to  "save  the  Union"  and 
this  either  with  or  without  slavery. 

So  eager  was  the  North  and  the  Republican  party  to 
maintain  the  Union,  and  so  indifferent  were  they  to  the 
slavery  question,  that  after  the  election  of  Lincoln,  both 
houses  of  Congress  passed  a  provision  for  a  constitutional 
amendment  and  sent  it  to  the  states  for  ratification, 
providing  that  slavery  should  be  forever  guaranteed 
and  that  no  future  amendment  to  the  Constitution 
should  ever  be  submitted  authorizing  Congress  to 
interfere  with  slavery  in  the  states  where  it  was  then 
located.' 

The  South  seceded  because  no  industrial  system  can 
continue  unless  its  ruling  class  controls  the  government. 
This  is  especially  true  of  a  system  based  on  exploitation. 
The  South  had  no  need  of  the  North.  Its  industrial 
system  was  barred  by  soil  and  climate  from  expanding 
in  that  direction.  If  it  had  a  government  it  could  con- 
trol, there  was  the  possibility  of  expansion  to  the  South. 
Even  at  the  price  of  surrendering  the  system  of  chattel 
slavery  the  Southern  ruling  class  preferred  a  govern- 
ment which  it  could  control.  Numerous  proposals  look- 
ing to  the  abolition  of  negro  chattel  slavery  were  con- 
sidered in  the  Confederate  Congress,  when  it  was  thought 
»  J.  SthouRT,  "History  of  the  United  Sutes,"  Vol.  V,  p.  507. 


mm 


Ss^ 


*K~  "  '  -  ftj 


lynyygglliggig 


RISE    OF   NORTHKRN   CAPITALISM 


263 


that  such  action  might  possibly  bring  the  support  of 
France  and  England  to  the  Confederate  cause.' 

The  North,  on  the  contrary,  had  a  strong  interest  in 
maintaining  the  Union  intact.  Capitalism  must  expand, 
and  it  knows  almost  no  limits  of  st)il  or  climate.  The 
South  was  largely  in  the  nature  of  a  colony  of  the 
North.  Estimates  of  the  debts  of  Southern  planters  and 
merchants  to  Northern  capitalists  in  1S60  run  from  forty 
to  four  hundred  million  dollars.-  These  debts  were 
promptly  repudiated  on  the  outbreak  of  war.  The  Con- 
federate government  authorized  the  payment  of  such 
debts  to  it  instead  of  to  the  original  creditor.^ 

When,  theiefore,  the  capitalist  class  came  into  power 
through  Lincoln  and  the  Republican  party  secession  by 
the  South  and  Civil  War  to  prevent  that  secession  were 
inevitable. 

'  American  Hi'slorical  Review,  Vol.  I,  p.  07. 

=  John  C.  Schwab,  "The  Confederate  States  of  America,"  p.  no. 

^  Ibid.,  pp.  112-121.  London  Economist,  Jan.  12.  1861,  p.  30.  says: 
"Many  voices  have  been  heard  clamoring  for  secession  as  an  excuse  for 
repudiating  the  debts,  private  and  commercial,  as  well  as  public,  which 
they  owe  to  the  wealthier  classes  of  the  North." 


CHAPTER  XXII 


THE   ARMED  CONFLICT  OF   SECTIONAL  INTERESTS 


.'     t 


The  ruling  class  of  the  South  having  determined  upon 
secession,  and  the  rulers  of  the  North  being  convinced 
that  their  interests  demanded  a  united  nation,  the  ques- 
tion of  which  set  of  interests  should  prevail  was  decided 
by  an  armed  conflict. 

Looking  back  upon  that  conflict  through  the  lens  of 
later  knowledge,  the  South  seems  foredoomed  to  the 
defeat  it  met.  When  the  Constitution  was  adopted  and 
the  nation  began,  the  two  sections  were  almost  exactly 
equal  in  area,  population,  and  wealth.  The  slight  shade 
of  advantage  belonged  to  the  South.  This  equality  con- 
tinued until  the  industrial  revolution  that  followed  the 
War  of  1S12.  From  that  date  on  the  North,  borne  by 
the  new  machine-driven  industry,  began  to  leave  the 
agricultural  South  behind.* 

•  F.llw()()d  Fisher,  "  The  North  and  the  South,"  in  DvBow's  Rcviru), 
Vol.  VII,  p.  i,3;5  :  "When  the  constitution  of  the  United  States  was 
adopted,  the  (K)pulation  of  the  two  sections  of  the  United  States  was 
nearly  equal  —  caih  being  not  quite  two  million  of  inhal)itants,  the 
South  including  more  than  half  a  million  slaves.  The  territory  then 
occupied  by  the  two  was,  perhaps,  also  nearly  equal  in  extent  and  fer- 
tility. Their  commerce  also  was  about  the  same;  the  North  e.xporiiiis 
about  $0,800,540  in  1700  and  the  South  S(), 200,500.  E\  n  the  properly 
held  by  the  two  sections  was  ."Imost  exactly  the  same  in  amount,  bein.; 
four  hundred  millions  in  value  in  eadi,  according  to  an  assessment  for 
direct  taxes  in  17QO.  For  the  first  quarter  of  a  century  of  the  present 
government,  up  to  i'6i(>,  the  South  l<H)k  liie  lead  of  the  North  in  cora- 

264 


il 


ARMED   CONFLICT  OF  SECTIONAL   INTERESTS     265 

By  i860  the  South  had  a  population  of  but  nine 
million.  Of  these  three  million  were  negro  skivts.  The 
North  had  a  population  of  twenty-two  million,  the  in- 
dustrial portion  of  whom  were  wageworkers,  much  more 
effective  fighters  in  a  mihtary  contest,  —  and  this 
whether  they  carried  guns  or  tools  of  production.  In 
accumulated  capital,  in  industrial  productivity,  in  trans- 
portation facilities,  in  financial  resources,  commercial 
power,  and  all  the  other  things  from  which  modern 
militarism  draws  its  strength  the  North  was  -  verwhelm- 
ingly  the  superior.' 

mcrrc ;  as  at  the  end  of  that  period  the  exports  of  the  Southern  states 
amounted  to  about  $,^0,000,000,  which  was  five  millions  more  than  the 
Northern.  .Xt  this  time,  in  1816,  South  Carolina  and  New  York  were 
the  two  greatest  exporting  states  of  the  union.  South  Carolina  exi>Tting 
more  than  $io,ckx5,ooo  and  New  York  over  $14,000,000. 

"  Even  in  manufactures,  the  South  at  this  period  excelled  the  North 
in  proportion  to  the  numbers  of  their  populations.  In  1810,  accordinR 
to  the  returns  of  the  marshals  of  the  United  States,  the  fabrics  of  wot)l, 
cotton,  and  linen  manufactured  in  the  Southern  states,  amounted  to 
40,344,274  yards,  valued  at  821,061.525,  whilst  the  North  fabricated 
34. 78^>.407  yards,  estimated  at  $15. 771.724-  •  •  ■ 

"Since  that  period  a  great  change  has  occurred.  The  harbors  of  Nor- 
folk, of  Richmond,  of  Charleston,  and  Savannah  have  been  deserted  for 
those  of  Philadelphia,  New  York,  and  Boston;  and  New  Orleans  is  the 
only  southern  city  that  pretends  to  rival  its  northern  competitors.  The 
grass  is  growing  in  the  streets  of  those  cities  of  the  South,  which  origi- 
nally monopolized  our  colonial  commerce,  and  maintained  their  ascend- 
ani  >■  in  the  earlier  years  of  the  union.  Manufactures  and  t'le  arts  have 
al^o  pone  to  take  up  their  abode  in  the  North.  Cities  have  expanded 
and  multiplied  in  the  same  favored  region.  Railroads  and  canals  have 
been  constructed  and  education  has  delighted  there  to  build  her  colleges 
and  seminaries." 

'  John  C.  Ropes,  "The  Story  of  the  Civil  War,"  Vol.  I,  p.  qq  ;  "In 
material  prosperity  the  North  was  far  in  advance  of  the  South.  In 
accumulated  capital  there  was  no  comparison  between  the  two  sections. 
The  immigration  from  EurojM;  had  kept  the  labor  market  of  the  North 


266  SOCIAL   FORCES   IX    AMERICAN'    HISTORY 

In  si)ite  of  these  apparently  self-evident  facts,  the 
organs  of  ruling  class  interests  in  the  South  kept  up  a 
strange  sort  of  bombastic  self-deception.  This  exag- 
gerated self-confidence,  and  indifference  to  impending 
overthrow,  together  with  a  blindness  to  the  strength  of 
rising  classes,  has  been  an  almost  universal  characteristic 
of  ruling  classes.  An  e<litorial  in  DcBtnvs  Rcvicti\  in 
1862,  when  defeat  for  the  South  was  already  written 
plain  upon  her  industrial  and  social  life,  is  a  striking 
iJlustration  of  this  blind  overconfidencc  — 

"The  North  i..  bankrupt.  Her  people  must  migrate 
to  the  West  or  starve.  The  census  of  1S60  will  prove 
beyond  the  possibility  of  doubt  that  the  states  of  Xew 
York  and  Pennsylvania  and  the  Xew  England  states  do 

well  storked,  while  no  immi;;ranls  from  Irehind  or  Germany  were  willin}:; 
to  enter  into  a  com[)etili(>n  with  ncRro  slaves.  The  Xorlh  v  as  full  of 
manufartures  of  all  kinds;  the  South  had  very  few  of  any  kind.  The 
railroad  systems  of  the  North  were  far  more  perfect  and  extensive,  and 
the  roads  were  much  better  supplied  with  rolling  stock  and  nil  necessary 
apparatus.  The  Xorth  was  infinitely  richer  than  the  South  in  the  pro- 
duction of  ^'rain  and  meat,  and  the  boasted  value  of  the  South 's  tireat 
staple— cotton— sank  out  of  sifjht  when  the  blockade  closed  the  south- 
em  ports  to  all  commerce. 

"  .■\ccompan_\  ins  these  greater  material  resources,  there  existed  in  the 
Xorlh  a  much  larger  measure  of  business  capacity  than  was  to  be  found 
in  the  South.  .  .  .  The  great  merchants  and  managers  of  large  rail- 
roads and  other  similar  entcrjirizes,  in  the  Xorlh  were  able  to  render 
valuable  assistance  to  the  men  who  adminislerrd  the  Stale  and  Xalional 
governments.  .  .  ."  Page  loi  :  "The  Mercantile  marine  of  the  United 
States,  which  in  iS6r  was  second  only  to  that  of  Crcal  Rritain,  was  almost 
wholly  owned  in  the  Xorth.  It  was  chiefly  in  the  Xew  England  states 
that  the  ships  were  built.  The  sailors,  so  far  as  Ihey  were  Americans 
at  all,  and  ihe  greater  part  of  them  were  Americans,  were  Xortlierners. 
The  owners  were  nearly  all  merchants  in  the  Xorth  .\tlantic  cities. 
Hence  the  government  had  no  dilTiculty  in  recruiting  the  na\y  to  any 
extent,  both  in  ofljcers  and  men,  from  a  class  thoroughly  familiar  with 
the  sea." 


t.^t-bfJilS^'^, 


is-s^fe^;;-;.:'  ^■'^f^^^^im 


.^^^f^m^sK&mm^s 


ARMKI)    COM'LICT   OF  SKCTIOXAL   INTKRKSTS     267 


not  produce  annually  enough  meat  and  bread  to  feed 
their  population  for  six  months  in  the  year,  and  (except 
for  a  little  wool)  produce  nothing  with  which  to  dothe 
them.  Their  soil  is  extremely  sterile,  and  it  wouhl 
require  many  years  manuring  to  make  it  capable  of  sup- 
porting the  present  population.  They  cannot  produce 
their  own  food  and  clothing  and  will  have  nothing 
wherewith  to  purchase  it.  The  cotton  and  tobacco  crop 
of  the  South  for  a  single  year  would  sell  for  four  times 
as  much  as  all  the  specie  currenc}'  in  the  States  we  have 
mentioned.  They  will  refjuirc  every  cent  of  this  specie 
for  home  use,  at  least  during  the  war.  Their  manufac- 
tures will  sell  only  in  the  Northwest,  and  there  they  can 
sell  but  a  few  of  the  cheapest  and  coarsest  kind  —  not 
one  quarter  enough  to  supply  the  deficiency  of  food  and 
clothing.  Their  coarse  cottons  w?re  the  only  articles 
which  they  could  sell  in  the  markets  of  the  world  before 
secession.  Now  the  raw  cotton  will  cost  them  so  much 
that  they  will  no  longer  be  able  to  sell  cotton  fabrics 
abroad.  Their  local  wealth,  ciorivcd  from  houses,  fac- 
tories, railroads,  etc.,  cea'cd  to  exist  the  instant  seces- 
sion became  an  accomplished  fact.  Their  mercantile 
marine  is  the  only  thing  they  can  sell  in  foreign  markets, 
and  as  they  will  have  no  further  use  for  it  at  home,  they 
should  sell  it  as  speedily  as  possible.  The  South  will 
need  it  all,  and  would  buy  it,  to  carry  on  that  very  trade 
which  secession  has  transferred  to  her  from  the  North." 
Some  idea  of  the  value  of  knowledge  transmitted 
through  class  interests  is  gained  when  it  is  remembered 
that  the  writer  of  this  was  the  Commissioaer  of  the 
census  in  1S60  and  was  generally  looked  upon  as  one  of 
the  ablest  students  of  economic  and  pohtical  conditions. 


/!?•: 


268 


S(KI.\L    K)K(i;S    I.\    AMKRICAX    HISTORY 


The  Southern  rulers  did  not  beh'cve  that  a  united 
\(}rth  would  resist  separation.  Much  dependence  was 
placed  upon  the  strong  ties  of  commercial  interest  that 
hound  whole  sections  of  the  Xorth  to  the  South.  This 
dependence  was  by  no  means  wholly  misplaced. 
Throughout  the  war  there  were  many  sections  of  the 
North  wliere  the  tide  of  Southern  sympathy  ran  high. 
In  every  case  it  will  be  found  that  these  sections  were 
bound  to  the  South  and  to  the  system  of  chattel  slavery 
by  economic  ties.' 

When  broad  class  interests  arc  sharply  threatened, 
such  exceptions  become  of  small  importance.  In  time 
of  great  class  conflicts,  the  representatives  of  dominant 
class  interests  are  ruthless  in  their  suppression  of  diver- 
gent individual  or  group  interests,  whether  these  be  of 
"Tories,"  "copperheads,"  or  "scabs."  If  public  opinion 
does  not  sufTice  to  suppress  all  expression  of  revolt 
against  the  general  class  interest,  then  this  opinion  is  at 
once  reenforced  by  all  the  measures  of  group  defense. 
This  is  the  reason  why  the  firing  upon  Fort  Sumter 
caused  such  an  instantaneous  crystallization  of  "union" 
sentiment  in  the  North  and  of  "Southern  patriotism" 
in  the  slave  states. 

As  soon  as  the  two  systems  of  industry  were  definitely 
pitted  against  each  other,  the  tremendous  superiority  of 
the  wage-labor  system  appeared. 

Chattel  slavery  in  America  was  an  historical  atavism, 
and  not  a  stage  in  social  evolution.  It  came  many 
generations  after  the  disappearance  of  the  era  of  which 
chattel  slavery  was  an  essential  foundation.  It  came 
because  of  the  great  profits  which  the  raising  of  one 
'  Brown,  "The  Lower  South  in  American  History,"  pp.  59-60. 


it 


■im 


ARMED    CONFLICT   OF   SF.CTIONAL   INTFRF.StS     269 


[ 


crop  in  the  midst  of  an  otherwise  capitalist  society 
produced.  This  social  reversion  made  the  South  indus- 
trially dependent  ui)on  the  capitalist  societies  that  were 
its  workshops.  When  the  access  to  these  workshops 
was  stopped,  the  South  became  almost  heli>less.  It  was 
not  quite  helpless.  The  first  elTect  of  isolation  and  war 
was,  as  always,  to  hasten  industrial  evolution,  and 
especially  to  force  artificially  the  growth  of  machine 
production.' 

Xo  opportunity  was  olTeied  for  even  this  accelerated 
evolution  to  produce  any  important  results.  Time  was 
not  given  to  construct  mills  and  machines  and  to  develop 
the  skilled  artisans  and  to  organize  the  industrial  and 
distributing  machinery  essential  to  capitalized  industry. 
From  the  first  the  Northern  campaigns  were  directed 
toward  the  disorganization  and  disintegration  of  all 
germs  of  industrial  life. 

The  Mississippi  was  the  great  artery  of  internal 
Southern  trade.  When  armies  to  the  north  and  the 
blockade  on  the  sea  had  stopped  foreign  trade,  the 
possession  of  that  river  by  the  Federal  forces  prevented 


•Walter  E.  Fleming,  "Industrial  Development  in  -Mabama  during 
the  Civil  War,"  in  .9ci<//i  AtUmtic  Qitartrrly,  July,  1Q04,  p.  267:  "Both 
the  state  and  the  Confederate  government  cnrouraRed  manufactures 
by  legislation.  .  .  .  Factories  were  soon  in  operation  all  over  the  state, 
especially  in  central  .Alabama.  In  all  places  where  there  were  Rovem- 
ment  factories  there  were  also  factories  conducted  by  private  intiivid- 
uals.  In  1861  there  were  factories  at  Tallahassee,  .Autaujianvillc,  and 
I'ottsville,  with  23,000  spindles  and  800  employees,  which  could  make 
5000  yards  of  good  cloth  a  day.  .Xnd  other  cotton  mills  were  established 
as  early  as  1861.  The  federals  burned  these  buildinps  and  destroyed 
the  machinery.  There  was  the  most  unsparing  hostility  displayed  by 
the  Northern  armies  to  this  branch  of  industry.  They  destroyed  in- 
stantly every  cotton  factory  within  their  reach." 


mm 


270       sociAF.  F(mcr-,s  ix  amf-rican  history 

even  the  1(h;iI  circulation  of  commodities  which  wouM 
have  maintained  at  least  a  semblance  of  industrial  life. 

The  army  of  the  West  under  (irant  captured  Vicks- 
bur^  in  July.  186,^  and  the  Mississippi  became  a  Union 
sticam.  This  also  separated  the  eastern  and  lar^'er  sec- 
tion of  the  Confederacy  from  its  granary  and  provision 
supply  ^  Texas.'  With  the  essential  foreign  trade  cut 
olf  and  the  principal  channels  of  internal  trade  disrupted 
tlie  industrial  destruction  of  the  South  was  completed 
by  Sherman's  "march  to  the  sea,"  which  destroyed  the 
bc-gmmngs  of  the  factory  system  and  the  already  imper- 
fect railroad  system. 

Military  strength  rests  upon  an  industrial  base.  The 
Civil  War  was  decided  far  from  the  noise  of  exploding 
powder  and  blaring  bands  and  flowing  flags.  In  the 
South  the  industrial  base  was  a  miserable  makeshift  at 
the  best,  a  crumbling  hulk  at  the  finish. 

Modern  industrial  society  is  built  upon  an  iron  frame- 
work. Nothing  is  more  characteristic  of  the  weakness 
of  Southern  industrial  life  than  the  futile,  frantic  eflorts 
made  to  secure  iron. 

"In  a  paper  read  before  a  railroad  conference  in 
Richmond,"  .says  Rhodes,  "it  is  suggested  that  the  gov- 
ernment make  a  public  appeal  for  all  the  cast  and 
wrought  iron  scrap  on  the  farms,  in  the  yards  and 
houses  of  the  Confederacy,  and  that  it  establish  a  sys- 
tem for  the  collection  from  the  country,  cities,  towns, 
and  villages  of  'broken  and  worn-out  plows,  plow  points^ 
hoes,  spades,  axes,  broken  stoves,  household  and  kitcheii 
utensils,'  with  promise  of  adequate  compensation.  The 
rails  of  the  street  railroad  in  Richmond  were  taken  up 

'  Kcbciiion  Records,  bcries  I,  Vol.  IV,  pp.  119,  122, 


1! 


ARMED   CONFLICT    OF   SKCTIONAL    INTF.RISTS     271 

to  be  made  into  aimor  for  a  gunboat.  The  planters  of 
Alabama,  in  the  very  re^'ions  where  ir(M\  ore  existed  in 
abundance  underground,  could  not  get  iron  enough  to 
make  and  repair  their  agricultural  implements." 

By  the  time  of  the  Civil  War  the  railroad  had  already 
become  the  most  important  tool  of  an  industrially  in- 
terdependent society.  In  railroads  the  South  \%as  at  a 
miserable  disadvantage  in  the  beginning,  and  every  day 
aggravated  that  tlisad vantage.  Mileage,  already  too 
little,  grew  less  before  the  ravages  of  Northern  armies 
and  the  paucity  of  Southern  resources.  The  war  dis- 
solved the  loose  beginnings  of  systems  into  their  feeble 
isolated  elements."  A  defective  and  scanty  ecjuipment 
quickly  deteriorated  from  its  original  low  standard  into 
almost  complete  uselessness.^  The  workshops  for  the 
manufacture  and  repair  of  equipment  were  in  the  North, 
and  the  South  was  unable  to  improve  or  even  maintain 
the  scanty  rolling  stock  possessed  at  the  time  of  secession. 

The   postal   system  of  the   North   looks  poor  when 

>  Schwab,  "The  Confederate  States  of  America,"  pp.  27:-27,v 
^  Ibid.,  I).  274.  Rhodes,  "History  of  the  United  States,"  Vol.  V, 
p.  384  :  "In  1861  the  railroads  had  already  begun  to  deteriorate,  and  as 
the  years  went  on  the  condition  Rot  worse  and  worse.  .  .  .  .An  estimate 
in  detail  of  the  capacity  of  34  railroads  was  made  to  the  Secretary  of 
War  (in  1863)  which  showed  on  an  avcruRe  of  the  whole  less  than  two 
freight  trains  daily  each  way,  each  train  carrying  12.'  tons;  and  this 
estimate  was  undoabtedly  too  high  to  apply  to  regular  operations  through- 
out the  year.  From  everywhere  came  complaints.  Cities  wanted  f(M>d 
which  the  railroads  could  not  bring.  In  January,  1S64,  it  was  said  that 
corn  was  selling  at  $1  to  S2  a  bushel  in  southwestern  Georgia  and  at 
$12  to  Sis  in  Virginia.  Another  Richmond  authority  at  the  close  of 
that  year  was  sure  that  every  one  would  have  enough  to  eat  if  foo<l  could 
be  properly  distributed.  The  defective  transportation  was  strikingly 
emph.T^ized  when  Sherman's  army  in  Georgia  revelled  in  plenty  while 
Lcc"s  soldiers  almost  starved  in  Virginia." 


2^2  SOCIAL    FOKCKS    IN    AMKKK W    HISTORY 

viewed  from  to-duy's  vantage  pdint.  It  was  infmiLdy 
sujicrior  to  that  of  the  South.  Ilie  Confederate  consti- 
tution required  the  postal  service  to  be  always  self- 
sup[)ortinj,'.  To  meet  this  condition  letter  postaKc  was 
placed  at  live  cents  per  half  ounce  for  le.-,s  than  fjve 
hundred  miles  and  ten  cents  for  ^Teaier  distances. 
When  even  these  rates  failed  to  pay  expenses,  they  were 
doubled. 

In  the  fmancial  resources  which  are  drawn  from  in- 
dustrial development  the  South  was  even  more  strikingly 
inferior.  Although  this  section  had  the  sympathy  of  the 
European  industrial  and  commercial  rivals  of  the  Xorth, 
Kngland  in  particular,  yet  this  sympathy  did  not  lead 
tiiem  to  purchase  Confederate  bonds  in  large  quantities. 
There  was  no  powerful  banking  class  in  the  South  to 
gain  profits  for  its  members  and  furnish  resources  to  the 
government  by  great  financial  operations  such  as  are 
essential  to  the  conduct  of  a  great  war. 

The  one  important  Southern  asset  was  cotton.     Later 
writers,  with  that  wise  foresight  that  comes  so  clearly 
after  the  events  are  long  past,  have  often  pointed  out 
that   had    the   Confederate  government   seized   all   the 
cotton  possible  during  the  months  after  secession,  and 
before  the  blockade  was  declared,  and  shipped  it  to  Eng- 
land,  that  cotton  could  have  been  drawn  against  for 
many  millions  of  much  needed  dollars.     But  Southern 
economic  philosophy  was  as  atavistic  as  its  social  sys- 
tem, and,  with  a  strange  revival  of  a  long  dead  Mer- 
cantilism, the  Confederates  imagined  they  could  compel 
the  weaving  nations  to  come  to  their  relief  by  withh  aid- 
ing the  raw  material  for  the  looms.     So  the  South  fell 
into  the  trap  of  its  opponent,  and  aided  the  Northern 


mmm 


.\RMKr)    CONFLICT   OF   sl.CTIoWI.   INTrRF.STS     :r 


blt)ck;i(li.'  by  forbiddinj.^  the  export  ol  (Milon.  My  the 
time  the  foolishness  of  this  pohcy  h;iil  betoine  ;il)p.irent 
tlie  leiUacles  of  tlie  Xorlhern  iki\  \  lunl  lightened  until 
the  harbors  of  the  South  were  ilosed  sase  to  the  hijjhly 
hazardous  and  expensive  commerce  of  the  blockade 
runners. 

Since  there  was  no  class  of  prolit-takers  at  home  or 
abroad,  both  able  and  willing  to  purchase  Confederate 
bonds,  the  government  was  soon  compelled  to  fall  back 
uiM)n  the  forced  loans  of  fiat  money.  Later  this  was 
supplemented  by  an  economic  reversion  to  the  stage  of 
barter  and  commodity  currency.  Bonds  were  exchanged 
for  and  taxes  collected  in  commodities  (especially  cotton, 
of  course),  and  the  government  accumulated  great 
quantities  of  commodities  whose  market  was  barred  by 
Federal  gunboats.' 

When  defeat  was  seen  to  be  inevitable  the  whole 
Confederacy  collapsed.  The  currency  lost  all  value,  and 
nearly  as  many  soldiers  deserted  and  returned  to  their 
homes  as  remained  to  be  surrendered  to  Federal  generals. 
There  are  rumors  that  these  general  desertions  were  due 
to  the  spreading  of  the  idea  that  "this  is  a  rich  man's 
war  and  a  poor  man's  fight,"  and  that  non-slaveholding 
soldiers  left  because  they  had  come  to  realize  their  non- 
interest  in  the  war.^  Unfortunately  there  seems  to  be 
little  contemporary  evidence  of  such  intelligence.  The 
South  was  defeated  because  its  social  life  rested  upon  a 
lower,  more  undeveloped,  less  perfectly  organized  and 
more  essentially  atavistic  industrial  baso  than  that  of 
the  North. 

>  "  Cambridge  Modern  History,"  Vol.  Ill,  p.  6io. 
»  James  b.  I'lke  s  •The  Prosirate  ISiau-,"  \>.  75. 


i!" 


274 


SOCIAL   FORCES  IN  AMERICAN   HISTORY 


pi    I' 


There  was  one  fact  which,  had  there  been  any  to  read 
its  significance  in  the  light  of  historical  evolution  through 
class  struggles,  would  have  been  seen  to  be  darkly  por- 
tentous for  the  negro.  This  was  the  fact  that  there 
were  no  slave  revolts  during  the  war.'  The  goblin  that 
had  kept  the  South  in  trembling  terror  for  a  half  a  cen- 
tury was  seen  to  be  the  phantom  created  by  a  guilty 
conscience.  The  fact  was  more  sinister  in  its  significance 
for  the  black.  His  inaction  in  time  of  crisis,  his  failure 
to  play  any  part  in  the  struggle  that  broke  his  shackles, 
told  the  world  that  he  was  not  of  those  who  to  free  them- 
selves would  strike  a  blow. 

Representatives  of  a  ruling  class,  both  North  and 
South,  have  praised  him  for  his  '"lyalty  "  and  "fidelity" 
in  a  time  of  danger.  At  the  same  time  this  same  ruling 
class  has  shown  its  contempt  for  him  by  taking  from  him 
many  of  the  rights  tossed  hi.n  as  incidental  to  the  game 
of  war.  Among  the  rights  so  i  .sscd  him  was  freedom 
from  chattel  slavery.  Emancipation  was  not  granted  to 
help  the  negro,  but  to  hurt  the  South.  That  it  came 
too  late  to  have  much  effect  even  in  that  direction  may 
be  judged  from  the  fact  that  the  Confederate  Congress 
long  debated  the  question  of  freeing,  and  even  arming, 
the  slaves  as  a  means  of  gaining  European  sympathy. 

Not  only  were  Northern  resources  vastly  superior  at 
the  beginning  of  the  war ;  but  war  under  wage  labor, 
unless  pushed  to  a  degree  of  exhaustion  not  attained  even 
by  the  stupendous  struggle  of  the  Civil  War,  so  far  from 
impoverishing  or  weakening,  actually  enriches  and 
strengthens  the  dominant  class. 

The  panic  that  began  in  1857  reached  its  most  acute 
»  Rhodes,  "  History  of  sho  United  Slaics,"  Vol.  V,  pp.  460-464. 


[■■Ji^f^^j  ■**-•■  vV> 


^As^i 


ftatt 


ARMED   CONFLICT  OF  SECTIOXAL   INTERESTS 


75 


and  depressing  stage  at  the  outbreak  of  the  war.  It  is 
this  fact  that  is  larpjely  responsible  for  the  "hard  times" 
that  are  associated  with  the  first  years  of  the  war.  At 
the  very  time  when  the  mihtary  outh)ok  was  darkest  for 
the  North,  industrial  recovery  began.'  The  momentum 
of  the  upward  movement  was  much  accelerated  by  the 
military  operations.  The  vast  armies  in  the  field,  aver- 
aging a  million  and  a  half  men  from  the  North  alone,- 
and  making  no  account  of  the  large  numbers  indirectly 
connected  with  military  operations  and  withdrawn  from 
productive  industry,  created  a  tremendous  market 
"foreign"  to  the  direct  industrial  process.  This  un- 
productive mass  absorbed  such  a  quantity  of  the  products 
of  labor,  that  a  surfeited  market  was  almost  impossible. 
Consequently  the  surplus  value  produced  by  the  workers 
who  remained  in  the  fields  and  the  factories,  using  the 
newly  invented  machinery  with  multiplied  productive 
power,  flowed  in  gigantic  streams  into  the  pockets  of  the 
Northern  capitalists.'' 

The  Civil  War  brought  the  era  of  great  manufacturing 
plants.  It  made  iron  and  wool  the  rulers  of  the  industrial 
world,  and  therefore  the  political  rulers,  and  the  makers  of 
tariffs  and  masters  of  appropriation  bills  for  two  genera- 
tions. The  demand  for  uniforms  and  blankets  for  the 
armies  guaranteed  an  almost  exhaustless  market  for  cloth 
of  an  unchanging  character.  Mill  after  mill  ran  month 
after  month  exclusively  upon  goods  for  the  armies  in 
the  field.  Cotton  mills  were  remodeled  to  enable  them 
to  weave  wool.  Hundreds  of  new  establishments  were 
built.     All  paid  great  dividends  upon   the  capital  in- 

•  Rhodes,  loc.  cit.,  \ol.  V,  pp.  iqS-iqq.  '  Ibid.,  p.  i86. 

'  David  A.  \\cll=,  "Our  Burden  and  our  Strength." 


I 
•  1 


Hi 


i 

Ml 
i 

i 

n 


-^JMi\'r 


•.'~s^s^s^; 


■'■  ■  u 


276  SOCIAL   FORCES   IN   AMERICAN   HISTORY 

vested.  The  following  table  shows  the  sudden  increased 
consumption  of  wool  by  American  mills  during  the  Civil 
War:^  — 

Year  Pounds  Used 

1840 45,615,326 

1850 71,176,355 

i860 85,334,876 

1863 180,057,156 

1864 213,871,157 

The  production  of  profits  and  the  creation  of  new  in- 
dustries in  connection  with  wool  was  not  confmed  to  the 
process  of  weaving.  The  necessity  for  making  such  great 
quantities  of  identical  suits  brought  into  existence  the 
ready-made  clothing  industry.  The  mechanical  founda- 
tion for  this  industry  had  been  laid  by  the  invention  of  the 
sewing  machine,  which  had  been  in  process  since  1840, 
and  been  perfected  to  a  practicable  working  machine  by 
Elias  Howe  in  1849.^ 

The  great  profits  in  the  production  of  genuine  woolen 
goods  could  not  fail  to  create  a  fraudulent  imitative  in- 
dustry. The  war.  with  its  scarcity  of  cotton  and  high 
price  for  wool,  created  the  great  American  "shoddy" 
industry.' 

Iron  and  steel  completed  their  conquest  of  the  indus- 
trial field  during,  and  largely  because  of,  the  Civil  War. 

•  Slalistical  Abstract  iqoo;  Bollcs,  "Industrial  History,"  pp.  382- 
383  ;  Census  of  i8qo,  "  Manufactures,"  p.  8  ;  Lcvasseur,  "  The  American 
Workman,"  p.  26. 

'  Sewins  machines  using  the  "chain  stitch"  had  been  in  use  for  many 
years  and  had  been  gradually  improved.  Howe's  contribution  was  the 
"lock  stitch"  with  two  threads.  See  article  "Sewing  Machines" 
in  "  Encyclopedia  .Vmcricana  "  ;  also  Fite,  "Social  and  Industrial  Condi- 
tion in  the  North  during  the  Civil  War,"  pp.  SS-8y. 

•  Census  of  1S90,  "  Manufacturing  Industries,"  Vol.  Ill,  p.  38. 


ARMED   CONFLICT   OF  SECTIONAL  INTERESTS 


-^77 


The  demand  for  small  arms  and  artillery,  wagons,  rail- 
road supplies,  and  ironclads  made  this  the  Golden  Age 
of  profits  in  iron.  Not  only  did  existing  mills  fmd  their 
capacities  taxed  at  exorbitant  prices ;  new  ones  were 
erected  almost  by  the  hundreds,  and  the  earth  was 
searched  for  ore  supplies.  In  this  search  the  great  ore 
beds  of  Lake  Superior,  the  possession  of  which  insured 
the  establishment  of  a  world-wide  steel  trust  in  the  future, 
were  discovered  and  opened  up  on  a  large  scale.' 

The  wage  system  gains  much  of  its  power  from  its 
ability  to  substitute  machines  for  men.  The  armies 
taken  from  industry  left  an  increased  demand  for  labor 
power.  This  demand  was  met  by  increasing  the  pro- 
ductive power  of  those  left  behind  through  improved 
machinery.  The  records  of  the  patent  ofBce  show  that 
a  quick  response  was  made  to  the  premium  that  was 
thus  placed  upon  invention.  In  1861  there  wer'^  3:^40 
[)atents  granted.  Four  years  later,  when  the  patents 
from  the  inventions  made  during  the  war  were  reaching 
the  patent  office  in  large  numbers,  and  while  the  South- 
ern states  were  outside  the  Union  and  more  than  a  million 
of  the  men  at  the  North  were  in  military  service,  the 
remnant  left  behind  took  out  6220  patents.^ 

'  "  One  Hundred  Years  of  American  Commerce,"  p.  325  ;  Bolles,  "In- 
dustrial History,"  pp.  2o8-2og ;  J.  H.  Kennedy,  "The  Opening  up  of 
the  Laiie  Superior  Iron  Region,"  Magazine  of  American  History,  Vol  II, 
P-  357- 

^  David  .A.Wells,  "Recent  Experiences  of  the  United  States";  Report 
Commissioner  of  Patents,  1863,  p.  47  :  ".\Iihough  the  country  ha;  been 
engaged  in  a  war  which  would  have  seemed  to  tax  to  the  utmost  all  its 
energies,  the  apjilications  for  patents  for  the  last  year  have  heen  equalled 
in  only  two  former  years ;  and  yet  one  half  of  our  territor>-,  shrouded 
in  the  cloud  of  rebellion,  has  contributed  nothing  to  invention  or  human 
improvement." 


278 


SOCIAL  FORCES   IN  AMERICAN'   HISTORY 


It  was  this  power  of  the  North  to  produce,  this 
peculiarity  of  the  wage  system  that  draws  strength  from 
the  murderous  waste  of  war,  that  gave  that  section  its 
power.  The  war,  was  won  as  much  by  the  industrial 
workers  who  toiled  in  the  shop  (and  whose  death  rate 
and  percentage  of  injurod  was  fully  as  high  as  that  of  the 
workers  in  the  military  ranks)  as  by  those  who  carried 
guns.  Vet  pensions  and  glory  are  reserved  exclusively 
for  those  who  took  up  the  trade  of  killing. 

Perhaps  the  strongest  battalions  in  this  industrial 
army  that  fought  for  the  North  were  on  the  farms.  It 
has  been  said  that  "the  war  was  won  by  the  McCormick 
reaper,"  and  the  statement  is  more  nearly  true  than  most 
popular  generalizations  on  history.  It  was  not  alone  that 
the  new  horse-drawn  machinery  multiplied  the  power  of 
the  workers  in  the  fields.  It  transformed  the  aged,  the 
women,  and  the  children,  whom  the  marching  armies 
had  left  behind,  into  producers  more  effective  than  strong 
men  had  been  with  the  former  tools.  So  it  was  that  the 
wartime  crops,  raised  by  the  weakest  fraction  of  the  in- 
dustrial population,  were  greater  than  any  raised  by 
adult  skilled  farmers  in  former  years.' 

"  Commissioner  of  Patents,  Report  for  1863,  p.  21  :  "  The  most  strik- 
ing fact  connected  with  this  class  (agricultural  implements)  is  the  rapid 
increase  of  api)Iications  filed.  Notwithstanding  half  a  million  of  our 
agriculturists  have  been  withdrawn  from  the  farm  to  engage  in  military 
service,  still  the  number  of  ai)[>licati()ns  for  patents  on  agricultural 
implements  (exclusive  of  reapers,  beehi\es,  horse  hay-forks,  and  horse 
hay-rakes)  has  increased  from  350  in  1851  to  502  in  1863.  At  first 
thought  such  a  result  would  seem  an  anomaly,  but  it  is  this  large  drain 
upon  the  laboring  classes  which  has  caused  a  -reater  demand  than  usual 
for  lalx)r-saving  machinery.  The  increased  demand  for  farm  products, 
and  their  higher  price  in  consequence,  have  also  doubtless  helped  to 
incrc.ise  tlie  number  of  labor-sa\ing  machines." 


ARMED   CONFLICT   OF  SECTIONAL   INTERESTS     2 


79 


These  bountiful  crops  found  a  ready  market  at  high 
prices.  To  the  increased  demand  from  the  unproductive 
armies  in  the  field  was  added  an  extra  call  from  Europe 
due  to  poor  harvests.  The  farmer,  like  the  industrial 
capitalist,  drew  prosperity  from  the  war.  His  influence 
in  government  was  still  considerable,  as  is  seen  by  the 
establishment  in  1862  of  a  national  department  of  agri- 
culture and  the  subsidizing  the  state  agricultural  colleges. 

The  influence  of  the  war,  through  its  effect  upon  manu- 
facturing, transportation,  and  agriculture,  had  far-reach- 
ing eiTects  upon  the  movements  of  population  and  the 
relative  strength  of  sections  and  cities. 

That  the  states  around  the  Great  Lakes  were  not  mis- 
taken in  deciding  that  their  material  interests  united 
them  with  the  system  of  wage  labor  is  evidenced  by  the 
fact  that  to  no  other  section  did  the  Civil  War  bring  such 
great  material  growth.  When  the  Mississippi  was  com- 
pletely closed  to  traffic  and  the  South  was  cut  off  as  a 
market,  the  lake  ports  became  the  only  gateways  for 
the  tremendous  commerce  of  the  broad  agricultural 
Hinterland}    Chicago  and  Cleveland    leaped    at    once 

'  File,  "Social  and  Industrial  Conditions  in  the  North  during  the 
Civil  War,"  p.  67.  Speaking  of  Chicago :  "  This  city  had  the  inique 
(li.ilinction  among  the  growing  western  cities  of  possessing  no  railroad 
indebtedness,  while  her  rivals,  St.  Louis,  Milwaukee,  Detroit,  and  some 
smaller  cities,  weighed  down  by  debts  to  obtain  the  few  rai..oads  they 
had,  were  even  compelled  to  call  upon  their  respective  states  to  issue 
many  millions  of  dollars  of  bonds  in  tneir  aid.  The  railroads  created 
Chicago,  not  Chicago  the  railroads.  It  was  a  natural  trade  center  to 
which  in  the  short  space  of  ten  years  seven  new  trunk  lines  from  the  South, 
West  and  North  were  built,  and  irom  which  three  trunk  lines  and  the 
Lakes  led  eastward.  .As  late  as  1850  the  city  celebrated  the  arrival  of 
the  first  train.  In  1864  it  was  entered  by  over  ninety  trains  daily." 
James  V.  Rhodes,  in  American  Maf^azine  of  History,  \\,  p.  337:  "The 
turning  point  of  the  material  development  of  Cleveland  was  reached  in 


ai 


28o  SOCIAL   FORCICS   IN   AMERICAN    HISTORY 

from  trade  centers  to  great  crude  industrial  centers. 
The  flow  of  agricultural  products  called  into  existence 
the  outline  of  that  great  radial  system  of  railroads  that 
now  feed  those  cities,  and  has  been  responsible  for  their 
growth. 

The  manipulation  of  war  finances  poured  such  a  golden 
flood  into  the  vaults  of  a  clique  of  Xew  York  bankers  as 
to  give  them  domination  within  the  cai)italist  ranks.' 
Inflation  of  the  currency  with  the  accompanying  oppor- 
tunity to  gamble  in  gold,  the  manipulation  of  internal 
revenue  taxes,  vied  with  corrupt  military  contracts  and 
contraband  trade  in  cotton  in  contributing  to  that  "primi- 
tive accumulation,"  upon  which  American  fortunes  are 
based.- 

So  tremendous  was  the  g^^aft  in  connection  with  con- 
tracts for  military  supplies  that  most  historians  draw 

i860.  ...  In  i860  the  coal  and  iron  industries  had  only  beRun  to  be 
developed,  and  the  war  stimulated  these  m;  nufactures  at  Cleveland  as 
elsewhere.  .  .  .  The  war  found  Cleveland  a  commercial  city  and  left  it 
a  manufacturing  city." 

>  A.  S.  Bolles,  "Financial  History  of  the  United  States,"  Vol.  Ill, 
p.  20,  tells  of  a  meeting  of  Xew  York  bankers  with  the  assistant  Secretary 
of  the  Treasury,  where  the  arrangements  were  made  for  the  handling 
of  the  war  bonds,  by  which  these  bankers  controlled  the  sale  of  the 
securities. 

'"United  States  Cobden  Club  Essays,"  Series  1871-1872,  pp.  479- 
480 :  "Prices  rose  ra|)idly  with  every  increase  in  taxation,  or  additional 
issues  of  paper  money;  and,  under  such  circumstances,  the  burdens 
of  the  war  were  not  regarded  by  the  majority  of  producers  as  oppres.sive. 
Bi"t,  on  the  contrary,  counting  the  taxes  as  elements  of  cost,  and  reckon- 
ing profit  as  a  percentage  on  the  whole,  it  was  very  generally  the  case 
that  the  aggregate  profits  of  the  producers  were  actually  enhanced  by 
reason  of  the  taxes  to  an  extent  considerably  greater  than  they  would 
have  been  had  no  taxes  whatever  been  collected.  Indeed,  it  was  not 
mircqucntiy  the  case  thai  llie  nianufuttutcrs  themselves  were  the  most 
strenuous  advocates  for  the  continued  and  rapid  increase  of  taxation." 


y^m-'^: 


^tp- 


m  ■p'WmM-M^'^^' '    -^  -^^^^r^^^^-'^- 


ARMKl)   CONFLICT   OF   SF.CTIONAL   INTKRFSTS     :8l 

hack  in  horror  when  they  have  lifted  hut  a  corner  of  the 
thick  blanket  of  concealment  that  those  who  profited 
by  the  plunder  have  drawn  over  the  mess.  One  Congres- 
sional committee,  headed  by  Robert  Dale  Owen,  son  of 
Robert  Owen  the  Utopian  Socialist,  uncovered  frauds 
of  Si 7,000,000  in  $50,000,000  worth  of  contracts. 

This  committee  also  unearthed  the  fact  that  one  of  the 
fortunes  whose  foundation  was  bein;^  built  upon  fraud  and 
corruption  at  this  time  was  that  of  J.  Pierpont  Morgan, 
who  was  caught  in  the  act  of  selling  and  reselling  con- 
demned carbines  to  the  government.' 

Rivaling  even  the  military  contracts  as  a  source  of 
"primitive  accumulation"  by  corruption,  treason,  and 
theft,  was  the  contraband  trade  in  cotton  carried  on  by 
Northern  merchants  in  illegal  collusion  with  Federal 
army  officers.  To  prevent  the  exportation  of  cotton  was 
one  of  the  main  objects  of  the  Federal  campaign.  To 
assist  in  the  marketing  of  that  cotton  was  treason,  "giv- 
ing aid  and  comfort  to  the  enemy."  But  cotton  was  less 
than  ten  cents  a  pound  in  the  South  and  more  than  fifty 
cents  a  pound  in  New  England.  Before  such  a  profit 
capitalist  patriotism  has  never  yet  stood  unscathed. 
Soon  "permits"  began  to  be  issued  for  cotton  to  pass 
through  the  Northern  lines.  Then  the  floodgates  of 
corruption  broke  and  the  carnival  of  profit  was  on. 
Congressman  Ten  Eyck  of  New  Jersey  stated  upon  the 
floor  of  the  House  of  Representatives :  — 

"We  have  .  .  .  prolonged  the  rebellion,  and  strength- 
ened the  arm  of  traitors  by  allowing  the  very  trade,  in 
consequence  of  which  not  only  union  men  and  women, 

1  iJUrsfi^c  "Historv  of  United  State;,"  Vol.  V.pp.  213-221.  On  Mor- 
gan steal,  see  House  Kept.,  37th  Cong.,  2d  Sess.,  No.  2. 


m 


283 


SOCIAL    I()R(  i;S    I\    AMKRIC.W    MIMORV 


but  rebels  of  tin-  deepest  dye,  have  been  fed  and  have  had 
their  pockets  hned  with  greenbacks,  by  means  of  which 
they  could  carry  on  the  rebellion.     Under  the  permission 
to  trade,  supi)lies  have  not  only  gone  in,  but  bullets  and 
powder,  instruments  of  death  which  our  heroic  soldiers 
hav-e  been  compelled  to  meet  upon  almost  every  field  of 
battle  in  which  they  have  been  engaged  in  the  South.  .  . 
I  am  greatly  afraid  that  in  some  quarters  the  movements 
of  our  armies  have  been  confluctcd  more  with  a  view  to 
carry  on  trade  .  .  .  than  to  strike  down  the  rebels.  . 
The  whole  valley  of  the  Mississippi  along  the  line  of  the 
permittefl  trade  has  been  debauched;    not  merely  the 
Treasury  agents,    .    .    .   but   men  engaged   in   carrying 
our  flag,   not  only   upon   the   land   but  out   upon   the 
sea." 

The  financing  of  the  war  not  only  created  a  whole  set 
of  banking  institutions  '  and  placed  them  in  the  control 
of  a  small  clique.^  but  an  enormous  national  debt  was 
contractccl  that  was  to  maintain  a  class  of  bondholders 
for  a  generation  and  more  to  come.  A.  S.  Bolles,  in  his 
'•  Financial  History  of  the  United  States,"  estimates  the 
total  expenditures  of  the  war  at  86,189,929,908.  At  the 
close  of  the  war  the  national  debt  was  $2,773,236,174. 
The  workers  who  had  been  fighting  in  the  field  were  now 
compelled  to  join  an  army  of  industrial  toilers  engaged  in 
producing  the  interest  with  which  the  class  of  bond- 
holders were  supported. 

Workingmen  made  up  the  military  armies  and  the 
industrial  armies  alike,  but  they  obtained  few  benefits 

'  The  present  system  of  bankinR  was  establishetl  Feb.  25,  1863.     See 
"Camhridue  >toikrn  Hisiorv,"  Vn],  yu_  ;>.  .--r. 
-Bolles,  "  Financial  History  of  the  United  States." 


H'    II 


it 


■:.i^f^j^*-Ai^& 


SS>^'-:. 


ARMKD   CONFLICT   OF   SKCTIOXAL   INTI;RI.STS 


^"'3 


from  the  war.     Some  o*"  the  few  orpani/.ed  workers  of  the 
time  saw  this  and  protested  against  the  war." 

The  "antidraft  riots"  that  took  phue  in  many 
cities,  and  especially  in  \ew  York,  partook  of  many  of 
the  characteristics  of  a  labor  movement.-  They  began 
with  a  general  strike,  or  an  attempt  at  such  a  strike. 
The  spokesmen  of  the  movement  were  insistent  in  liitir 
denunciation  of  the  "exemption  clauses"  that  enabled 
rich  men  to  escape  the  draft.  There  were  many  who 
demanded  that  "money  as  well  as  men  should  be 
drafted." ' 

On  the  other  hand,  the  more  far-seeing  and  consciously 
revolutionary  element  among  Northern  workers  realized 
that  chattel  slavery  stood  in  the  way  of  progress.  The 
German  immigrants,  especially,  who  were  tilled  with  the 
"spirit  of  '48,"  enlisted  in  the  Union  army  almost  en 
masse.  The  presence  of  large  numbers  of  these  men  at 
St.  Louis  is  commonly  recognized  as  being  responsible 
for  the  defeat  of  secession  in  Missouri. 

In  Europe  the  Socialists,  and  nearly  the  whole  wage- 
workii.c;  class,  were  with  the  North.  It  was  the  cotton 
spinners  of  Lancashire  who,  believing  that  the  war  would 

«  Jas.  C.  Sylvis,  "RioRraphy  of  \Vm.  H.  Sylvis,"  p.  42:  "AmonR  the 
workinRmcn,  a  few  choice  spirits,  North  and  South,  knowiiiK  liiat  all 
the  burdens  and  none  of  the  honors  of  war  are  entailed  ui)on  labor, 
were  engaged  in  an  cfTort  to  frustrate  the  plans  of  those  who  seemed  to 
desire,  and  whose  fanatu  ism  was  calculated  to  precipitate  hostilities." 
'  See  "The  Volcano  under  the  City,"  by  "A  Voli  nleer  Special." 
'  In  the  scrapbooks  collected  by  William  Sylvis,  now  in  the  Crerar 
Library,  Chicago,  there  is  a  clipping  (A'ol.  1 2)  of  an  article  by  C.  Hen 
Johns,  Corresponding  Secretary  Pennsylvania  State  Labor  Union,  dis- 
cussing a  plank  in  liie  platform  of  the  National  Labor  Union,  from  wliich 


':;e  iuliu'.Miii;  is  i.ur.c!i 


,l,.r 


that  in  time  of  war,  money  shall  be  drafted  as  well  as  men." 


SI 


284 


SOCIAL   FDRCF.S   IN    AMKRIC.W    HISTORY 


end  chattel  slavery,  starved  rather  than  see  work  come 
through  lifting  the  (otton  blockade.  When  the  capital- 
ists of  England,  more  eager  to  defend  their  immediate 
profits  than  even  the  broad  interests  of  their  class,  would 
have  interfered  in  behalf  of  the  (\)nfederacy.  it  was  these 
workers  who  stood  in  the  way  of  such  action,  and  not  the 
least  of  those  who  were  responsible  for  this  steadfast 
position  of  the  English  workers  was  the  founder  v(  modern 
siientilk  Socialism  -~  Karl  Marx.'  He  worked  tire- 
lessly to  this  end,  and  as  a  result  of  his  efforts  the  In- 
ternational Workingmen's  Association  (the  "Old  Inter- 
national") sent  a  resolution  of  sympathy  to  President 
Lincoln.  When  we  remember  the  strength  of  this  or- 
ganization at  this  time,  its  widespread  influence  in  Eu- 
rope, and  the  critical  moment  at  which  that  influence  was 
exerted,  it  seems  probable  that  it  had  as  much  to  do  with 
the  outcome  of  the  Civil  War  as  many  factors  to  which 
historians  have  given  much  greater  weight. 

Out  of  the  Civil  War  was  born  the  elements  of  present 
society.  It  created  the  great  capitalist  and  the  great 
industry  and  the  mechanical  foundation  upon  which 
these  rest.  It  placed  these  in  control  of  the  national 
government,  and  for  the  next  generation  capitalism  was 
to  find  its  greatest  development  in  the  nation  the  war  had 
maintained  as  a  unit. 

•  John  Spargo,  "Life  of  Karl  Mant,"  pp.  26^-270. 


'd 


CHAPTKR  XXIII 


RECONSTRUCTION 


During  armed  conflict  the  commercial  and  industrial 
capitalist  skulks  in  the  background,  fattening  upon  the 
offal  of  war.  When  even  the  low  virtues  that  war  de- 
mands were  no  longer  necessary  to  social  rulership,  these 
vultures  came  from  their  retreat  and  ruled  and  rioted  in 
plunder.  Part  of  that  ruling  and  rioting  made  up  what 
is  called  the  Reconstruction  Period. 

The  conquest  of  the  South  was  complete  and  crushing. 
The  old  ruling  class,  and  th'  ^ial  system  upon  which  it 
lived,  were  gone,  and  none  cc  .  be  foolish  enough  to  ex- 
pect its  restoration.  The  attitude  of  the  ruling  spirits 
of  the  South  may  be  judged  by  the  announcement  in  the 
first  number  of  a  new  series  of  DeBow's  Reiiew,  ap- 
pearing in  January,  1866,  and  which  reads  as  follows:  — 

"My  purpose  in  the  future  is  to  give  it  [the  Review]  a 
national  character,  and  to  devote  all  of  my  energies  and 
resources  to  the  development  of  the  great  material  in- 
terests of  the  Union.  .  .  . 

"Regarding  the  issues  of  the  past  as  dead,  about  which 
a  practical  philosophy  will  not  dispute,  and  those  of  the 
present  as  living  and  potential,  it  is  the  part  of  the  Re- 
view to  accept  in  good  faith  the  situation  and  deduce 
from  it  all  that  can  be  promotive  of  the  best  interests  of 
the  whole  coimtry." 

28s 


ilJ 


I 

f 

J 


■  ic-r  _--..  -^ 


2Sb 


SOCIAL   FORCIiS    I.\   A.MIlklCA.N    MISTOKV 


Xorthcrn  Rcncnils  who  were  stafionrd  in  the  South 
at  the  close  of  (In-  war  wi-rc  almost  uri. millions  in  report- 
ing that  the  fornuT  ('ontVderate  soMiirs  and  olVuTrs  were 
willing  to  accept  the  results  of  the  defeat  they  had  suf- 
fered. 

The  passage  of  sectional  hatred  would,  however,  have 
thwarted  the  {)l.m.->  of  a  >niall  iml  powerful  divi>ion  of  the 
Northern  capitalists.  The  group  of  great  (apitalists 
created  by  the  war  was  still  composed  of  too  few  persons, 
and  was  too  highly  competitive,  to  he  able  to  control  the 
national  government  under  normal  conditions. 

This  group  of  great  cori)orations,  whose  inlluence  was 
so  feared  by  Lincoln  was  lulple;,s  to  combat  the  small 
bourgeoisie  which  was  still  dominant  in  much  more  than 
a  majority  of  the  states.  The  abolition  of  slavery  raised 
the  same  small  bourgeoisie  into  power  in  the  South.  Had 
the  South  been  permitted  to  return  to  the  Union  in  the 
simple  natural  manner  desired  by  Lincoln.'  there  would 
have  been  a  vast  fairly  uniform  body  of  voters  through- 
t)ut  the  South  and  the  upper  Mississippi  Valley  who 
would  have  been  hostile  to  the  interests  of  the  great  capi- 

'  "  Complete  Works,"  Vol.  11,  p.  674.  Last  public  address  :  "We  all 
apree  thai  the  seceded  states,  so-called,  arc  out  of  their  proper,  practical 
relation  with  the  Union,  and  that  the  sole  object  of  the  Kovernment, 
civil  and  military  in  rcRard  to  those  states  is  to  aKain  ^et  them  into  that 
proper  practical  relation.  I  believe  that  it  is  not  only  possible,  but  in 
fact  easirr,  to  do  this  without  deciding,  or  even  considering',  whether 
these  states  have  ever  been  out  of  the  Union.  lindinK  themseh  es  safely 
at  home,  it  would  be  utterly  immaterial  whether  they  ha.l  ever  been 
abroa.l.  Let  us  all  join  in  doint:  the  acts  necessarv  to  restoring  the  proi)er 
practi,al  relations  between  these  States  and  the  Union,  and  each  forever 
after  innocently  indulge  his  own  opinion  whether  in  doinR  the  acts  he 
brought  the  States  from  wit hout  into  the  Union.,  or  onlv  cave  them  prr^per 
assistance,  they  never  having  been  out  of  it." 


RI-.CON'^TRrcriDN' 


.'S; 


talists.  The  Greenback  movement,  the  Union  L;il»<ir 
party  of  tlie  e.irly  70's,  iind  the  wickspre.id  .intaj^oni-^ni 
to  llie  clifjue  of  Ijondholders,  ^reat  steel  and  wooku 
manufacturers,  and  government  contra*,  tors.  >\u>w  how 
real  was  this  danger   to  ^reat  capitali.-'t   intere>ts. 

If,  on  the  other  hand,  a  way  could  be  found  It)  kii  p 
alive  and  a^j,'ravate  sectional  hatred,  and  to  keep  the 
Southern  stales  from  the  Union  until  a  powerful  plutoc- 
r.icy  could  si'i/e  upon  all  the  str;ite^i(  points  of  social 
control,  then  the  interests  of  raj)idly  concentrating  wealth 
would  be  conserved.  It  is  not  necessary  to  conceive 
that  all  this  was  clearly  fore.seen  and  made  the  basis  of 
conscious  .social  action,  by  tho.se  responsible  for  the  pro- 
gram of  Reconstruction.  There  were  plenty  of  immedi- 
ate material  advantages  for  individual  members  of  the 
class  whose  more  distant  interests  \.ere  to  be  conserved 
which  led  to  the  same  end. 

There  were  still  i)rodigious  possibilities  of  plunder  in 
the  stricken  South.  There  were  hordes  of  picayune  polit- 
ical camp  followers  hungry  for  pelf.  The  fanatical 
abolitionist,  to  whom  the  chattel  slaveholder  had  been 
a  demon,  and  the  purchaser  of  wage  slaves  a  public 
benefactor,  was  a  willing  tool  in  the  orgy  of  Reconstruc- 
tion. To  these  could  be  called  the  support  of  all  that 
Hock  of  vultures  that  was  to  glut  itself  upon  the  desola- 
tion of  the  Southland. 

At  first  glance  there  would  seem  to  have  been  little 
left  in  the  South  worthy  the  attention  of  vandals.  Sel- 
dom has  the  desolation  of  war  been  more  terrible,  for 
seldom  has  war  swept  over  as  complex  a  society,  where 
lis  destruction  could  be  !^o  terrible.  For  comn.ired  with 
the  '  >cieties  of  other  centuries  that  of   the  South  was 


288 


SOCIAL  FORCES  IN   AMERICAN   HISTORY 


complex,  however  simple  it  appears  when  contrasted  with 
that  of  to-day  or  with  the  contemporaneous  North. 

Almost  all  of  the  industrial  life  that  belonged  to 
recent  times  was  wiped  out  by  the  war.  It  would  be 
hard  to  paint  an  exaggerated  picture  of  the  conditions 
that  prevailed.  One  such  picture  has  been  given  by 
J;imes  W.  Ciarner.  in  his  ""  Rec<;nstruction  in  Mississii)pi." 
This  will  IkjUI  good  for  the  entire  South  save  that  in  many 
states  where  the  operations  of  the  armies  had  been  more 
general,  the  devastation  and  social  disintegration  was 
much  greater.     He  says  of  Mississippi :    - 

"The  people  were  generally  impoverished;  the  farms 
had  gone  to  waste,  the  fences  having  been  destroyed  by 
the  armies,  or  having  decayed  from  neglect ;  the  fields 
were  covered  with  weeds  and  bushes ;  farm  implements 
and  tools  were  gone,  so  that  there  were  Ixirely  enough 
farm  animals  to  meet  the  demands  of  agriculture ;  busi- 
ness was  at  a  standstill ;  banks  and  commercial  agencies 
had  either  suspended  or  closed  on  account  of  insolvency ; 
the  currency  was  in  a  wretched  condition ;  .  .  .  there 
was  no  railway  or  postal  system  worth  speaking  of ;  only 
here  and  there  a  newspaper  running ;  the  labor  system 
in  vogue  since  the  establishment  of  the  colonies  was 
completely  overturned  ;  .  .  worse  than  all  this  was  the 
fact  that  about  one-third  of  the  white  bread-winners  of 
the  state  had  either  been  sacriliced  in  the  contest  or  were 
disabled  for  life,  so  that  they  could  not  longer  be  con- 
sidered as  factors  in  the  work  of  economic  organization. 
.  .  .  The  number  of  dependent  orphans  alone  was  esti- 
ni;ite(l  at  lo.ooo." 

Intt)  this  industrial  and  social  chaos  came  a  horde  of 
mercenary  Goths  and  Vandals.     They  were  released  upon 


ti:    I 


RECONSTRLCTIOX 


289 


this  desolated  land  as  a  part  of  the  political  coup  d'etat, 
by  which  the  present  ruling  class  attained  to  power. 

Had  President  Lincoln  lived,  it  seems  probal)le  that 
his  powerful  personal  following,  his  polilital  shrewdness, 
and  keen  tactful  insight  into  human  motives  might  have 
enabled  him  to  rally  the  interests  from  which  he  sprung, — 
t.ie  pioneer,  farmer,  and  small  manufacturing  and  trading 
class, — and  joining  these  with  the  new-born  factory 
wagcworking  class,  carried  through  his  policies.  But  he 
was  dead,  and  there  is  no  small  amount  of  .M.-iflcnce  tend- 
ing to  show  that  the  shot  that  killed  him  came  from  the 
direction  of  Wall  Street  rather  than  Richmond. 

It  would  be  hard  to  fmd  a  man  more  unsuited  to  take 
up  Lincoln's  task  than  Andrew  Johnson.  Tactless, 
stubborn,  abusive,  qu;irrelsome  (aggravated  by  occa- 
sional intoxication),  lacking  in  political  skill,  suspected 
of  Southern  sympathies  and  of  general  mediocre  ability, 
he  was  the  very  opponent  which  best  suited  the  purposes 
of  the  followers  of  Thad  Stevens,  the  Pennsylvania  iron- 
master. 

By  a  skillful  use  of  sectional  animosities  and  political 
alliances  the  great  capitalist  element  had  gained  control 
of  Congress.  The  war  it  had  v/aged  secretly  against 
Lincoln,  was  made  openly  and  boastingly  upon  John- 
son, who  was  trying  to  continue  Lincoln's  policies.  That 
he  was  so  following  Lincoln,  though  in  a  blundering,  tact- 
less manner,  no  historian  of  to-day  would  deny. 

As  fast  as  the  rebellion  had  been  crushed,  Lincoln  had 
set  about  reorganizing  the  state  governments  in  a  simple, 
practical  manner.  This  was  a  natural  action  since  the 
whole  war  had  been  waged  upon  the  theory  that  a  state 
cannot  secede,  and  that   therefore  the  Southern  states 


290 


SOCIAL   FORCKS   I\   AMERICAN   HISTORV 


had  never  l)een  outside  tlie  Union.  The  national  govern- 
ment had  been  conducting  the  war  under  the  clause  of 
the  constitution  ^-iving  power  to  "suppress  domestic 
insurrection"  in  any  state. 

While  the  states  were  dc  facto  out  of  the  Union,  there- 
fore, Congress,  courts,  and  army  had  declared  them 
firmly  inside.'  When  the  "'domestic  insurrection"  was 
sui)pressed,  and  the  state  governments  were  recognizing 
the  authority  of  the  national  government,  it  became  to  the 
interest  of  the  class  that  controlled  Congress  to  proceed 
upon  the  theory  that  these  states  were  now  outside  the 
Union. 

This  theory  was  translated  into  action  by  a  Ahcr 
coup  d'etat.  When  the  regularly  elected  representatives 
of  the  former  Confederate  states  presented  their  creden- 
tials at  Washington,  the  clerk  of  the  House  of  Represen- 
tatives under  the  instructions  of  the  so-called  ''Radical," 
or  Stevens  wing  of  the  Republican  party,  refused  to  read 
their  names  when  calling  the  roll  of  the  new  House. 

A  law  was  then  forced  through  by  this  same  element 
(March  2,  1867,  nearly  three  years  after  the  war  had 
closed )>  entirely  contrary  to  all  constitutional  provisions, 
and  therefore  strictly  revolutionary  in  character.  This 
law  wiped  out  state  governments  and  even  ignored  state 

'  The  Crittenden  Resolution,  adopted  by  large  majorities  of  both 
houses  of  Congress  in  July,  i8(>i,  gives  the  theory  upon  which  the  war 
was  waged.  In  pari  it  read  as  follows:  "That  this  war  is  not  waged 
on  their  part  in  any  spirit  of  o|)pression,  or  for  any  purfwse  of  coniiuest 
or  >ul)jugation,  or  pur(K)se  of  overt iirowing  or  interfering  with  the  rights 
or  establislied  institutions  of  those  stales,  but  to  defend  and  maintain 
the  supremai'v  of  the  constitution,  and  to  preserve  the  union  with  all 
tlic  (lignitN,  equality  and  rights  of  the  several  slates  ui)imf)aire<l ;  and 
that  as  soon  as  these  rights  are  accomplished  the  war  ought  to  cease."  — 
"  Documentary  History  of  Reconstruction,"  Vol.  I,  p.  118. 


U   If 


RECONSTRUCTION 


291 


lines,  and  divided  the  South  into  five  miiitar>'  districts. 
The  military  officers  in  charj^e  of  these  districts  were 
given  absolute  power  over  life,  liberty,  and  property,  save 
only  that  death  sentences  required  presidential  sanction. 

Xo  such  power  had  been  ex«"-cised  while  war  existed. 
It  was  conferred  now  long  after  peace  had  been  restored 
as  one  of  the  methods  by  which  the  present  capitalist 
class  captured  and  lield  the  control  of  the  national  govern- 
ment. 

Lest  it  may  be  denied  that  such  was  the  purpose  of 
these  actions,  I  will  let  the  man  who  was  directing  this 
legislation  speak  for  himself.  Whatever  else  may  be 
said  of  Thad  Stevens,  friend  and  foe  alike  admit  his 
brutal  frankness.  Speaking  of  the  Southern  states  on 
the  floor  of  the  House  of  Representatives,  December  18, 
1865,  he  said:  — 

"They  ought  never  to  be  recognized  as  capable  of  act- 
ing in  the  union,  or  being  counted  as  valid  states,  until 
the  constitution  shall  have  been  so  amended  as  to  make  it 
what  its  framers  intended ;  and  so  as  to  secure  perma- 
nent ascendency  to  the  party  of  the  union." 

Again  on  January  3,  1867,  he  said,  speaking  for  the  pas- 
sage of  the  Reconstruction  legislation  :  — 

"Another  reason  is,  it  would  assure  the  ascendency 
of  the  union  party." 

By  the  "party  of  the  union"  and  the  "union  party" 
he  meant,  and  intended  to  be  understood  as  meaning, 
the  "Radical"  wing  of  the  Republican  party. 

Having  eliminated  President  Johnson  by  well-nigh 
successful  impeachment  proceedings,  after  he  had  almost 
eliminated  himself  by  his  foolish  actions,  the  Stevens 

iiLti^ii  ^iOv;.;-utLi  lu  \\u;rv  Kb  will  UpOli  liiC  OUUlii  ili  SUCu 


292  SOCIAL   rOKCKS   L\    AMERICAN   HISTORY 

;i  manner  as  "to  secure  permanent  ascendency  to  the 
party  of  the  union." 

Cotton  was  still  king  in  the  South.     Prices  were  still 
I.henomenally   high,   although   four    years  of    war    had 
brought  about  a  great  increase  of  cotton-growing  in  India. 
In  the  twehe  months  after  the  close  of  the  war  the  value 
of  cotton  exports   reached  S200,ooo,ccx).'     Here  was  a 
prize  worth  gnibbing.  and  the  hungry  "  Reconstruction- 
ists"  did  not  overlook  it.     During  the  war  the  Confed- 
erate government  had  contracted  for  some  cotton,  hopin' 
to  smuggle  it  through  the  blockade.     All  so  contracted 
for  was  declared  confiscated  for  the  benefit  of  the  United 
States  treasury.     How  that  confiscation  was  carried  out 
is  thus  described  by  Professor  Walter  L.  Fleming,  editor 
of  the  "Documentary  History  of  R.  truction  "  :  — 

"The  territory  of  the  former  sta  .s  was  invaded  by 
swarms  of  treasury  agents,  or  those  who  pretended  to  be, 
searching  for  confiscable  property.  No  distinction  ap- 
pears to  have  been  made  by  them  between  property 
legally  subject  to  confiscation  and  property  that  was  not. 
These  agents  often  united  with  native  thieves  and  plun- 
dered the  country  of  the  little  that  was  left  in  the  way  of 
supplies,  cotton,  tobacco,  corn,  etc."^ 

We  learn  of  one  agent  in  a  small  town  in  Mississippi 
who  cleared  SSo.ooo  in  one  month  "confiscating  cotton." 

The  gr'vit  instrument  of  class  rule,  exploitation,  ex- 
propriation, and  accumulation  is  always  the  state.  Here 
rest.s  the  power  of  taxation  and  of  conferring  special 
privileges.  This  was  the  next  instrument  grasped  and 
u^ed  by  the  Reconstructionists  in  plundering  the  South. 

'  "Cambridge  Mo.k-rn  History,"  Vol.  X'll,  p.  fig;. 

2    **   Jjo(-<ir>-»..«« IT.*-.  <-.»  .._ 


:^s^^5:^ 


RECOXSTRUCTION 


293 


Four  means  were  elTcctive  in  this  capture  of  the  power  of 
the  states:  military  force,  negro  suffrage,  the  Freed- 
mcn's  Bureau,  and  widespread  secret  conspiratory  or- 
ganizations, like  the  Loyal  League. 

The  national  troops  in  the  South  were  the  pliant  tools 
of  the  politicians.  They  intimidated  voters,  protected 
hallot-bo.x  stufTers,  or  assisted  in  the  stufBng.  and  when 
these  methods  failed  to  obtain  a  majority  suitable  to  the 
political  camp  follower-,,  regularly  elected  officials  were 
thrown  out  that  defeated  candidates  might  take  their 
place.*  An  extensive  state  militia,  composed  of  black 
and  white  "k.-dical"  Republicans,  was  later  added  to  the 
national  troops.  Xinety-six  thousand  such  "soldiers" 
were  supported  by  the  Reconstructioi^  government  of 
South  Carolina  at  one  time.  Their  only  duty  was  to 
draw  money  and  supplies  from  the  state  treasury  and 
see  that  the  elections  went  for  the  proper  Republican 
candidates.^ 

The  trump  card  of  the  Reconstructionists  was  negro 
suffrage.  This  was  advocated  as  a  benevolent  measure 
for  the  protection  of  the  negro,  and  was  accompanied  by 
acts  disfranchising  nearly  the  whole  white  population  in 
the  South.  Had  freedom  and  the  vote  been  achieved  by 
the  negro,  they  would  have  been  powerful  defensive  and 
offensive  weapons.  But  they  were  thrust  into  his  hands 
as  tools  with  which  to  do  the  work  of  his  industrial 
and  political  exploiters.  Like  the  hoe  with  which  he 
'chopped  cotton,"  they  were  but  instruments  with 
wliich  to  bring  profit  to  his  masters. 

'  "  Documentary  History  of  Reconstruction,"  Vol.   II,  pp.  148-156, 
tilib  how  this  w.Ts  done  in  Xew  Orleans. 
-  Ibid.,  Vol.  II,  \>    79. 


294 


SOCIAL  FORCES   IN  AMERICAN   HISTORY 


Lincoln  had  favored  an  educational  test,  and  also, 
apparently,  some  proof  of  individual  initiative,  as  a  condi- 
tion of  suffrage.'  It  should  be  unnecessary  to  say  that 
I  do  not  raise  the  question  of  the  ''rightness"  or  "wrong- 
ness"  of  universal  negro  suffrage,  but  am  only  discussing 
the  forces  which  h.d  to  its  being  conferred  at  this  time 
and  the  results  which  flowed  from  it.  Several  Northern 
states,  controlled  by  the  Republican  party,  refused  the 
negro  tlie  ballot  by  referendum  vote  during  the  very 
years  when  that  party  was  philanthropically  thrusting 
that  same  ballot  into  the  hands  of  the  negro  in  the  South. - 
A  i)ossible  explanation  of  this  action  may  be  found  in  the 
greater  average  intelligence  and  individual  initiative  of 
the  Northern  negro. 

The  immediate  excuse  for  forcing  sulTrage  upon  the 
negro  without  any  request  for  it  being  preferred  by  him, 
and  indeed  for  much  of  the  hypocritical  "protective" 
legislation,  was  found  in  the  "black  codes"  and  "va- 
grancy laws"  enacted  by  some  of  the  Southern  states  im- 
mediately after  the  war.'  These  laws  sought  to  introduce 
a  sort  of  modified  serfdom  for  the  negro.  They  were 
much  like  those  enacted  by  capitalist  nations  to  compel 
the  natives  of  tropical  colonies  to  work.'*  In  some  cases, 
with  a  shrewd  cunning,  they  were  copied  almost  verba- 
tim from  the  "vagrancy  laws"  of  Northern  states,  with 

»  Letter  to  Gov.  Hahn,  Nicolay  and  Hay,  "Complete  Works,"  Vol.  II, 
p.  406. 

'  Hilary  H.  Herbert,  "  Reconstruction  at  Washington,"  in  "Noted  Men 
of  the  South,"  p.  13. 

'J.  G.  Blaine,  "Twenty  Years  of  Congress,"  Vol.  II,  pp.  93-104; 
Lalor's  "  Encyclopedia  of  Political  and  Social  Science,"  article  on  "  Recon- 
struct ion." 

«  Paul  S.  Reinseh,  "  Colonial  .\dministration,"  Chap.  DC. 


m 


I! 


fett 


RECONSTRUCTION 


295 


the  exception  that  instead  of  leaving  the  competitive 
struggle  to  decide  to  whom  the  law  should  apply,  they 
described  the  persons  aimed  at  by  the  color  of  their  skin. 
The  same  laws,  with  slight  change,  have  been  reenacted 
in  most  Southern  states  in  recent  years,  along  with  meas- 
ures disfranchising  the  negro,  and  no  protest  has  been 
raised  from  Republican  sources. 

There  was  no  question  of  the  pitiable  predicament  of 
the  negro  at  the  close  of  the  war.  Cut  ofT  from  his  former 
master  and  unable  to  adjust  himself  to  the  new  social  or- 
ganization in  whose  coming  he  had  played  no  part,  the 
football  of  all  contending  factions,  with  a  death  rate  far 
higher  than  in  chattel  slavery  days,  one  is  not  suri)rised 
to  learn  that  many  of  them  longed  for  the  "good  old 
days."  » 

'Albert  Phelps,  "New  Orleans  and  Reconstruction,"  in  AUantic 
Moiithly,  Vol.  LXXXVII,p.  125  :  "Under  the  institution  of  slavery  he  had 
developed  from  a  state  of  lowest  savagery  to  a  condition  of  partial  civiliza- 
tion ;  but  this  development  had  been  due  to  wholly  abnormal  conditions, 
and  had  not  been  at  all  analogous  to  the  slow  process  and  wccding-out 
struggle  through  which  the  white  races  had  toiled  upwards  for  thousands 
of  years.  .  .  .  The  peculiar  institution  of  slavery,  however,  protected 
him,  not  only  from  this  competition,  but  also,  by  artificial  means,  from 
those  great  forces  of  Nature  which  inevitably  weed  out  the  weaker 
organisms,  and  which  operate  most  unrestrainedly  upon  the  ignorant 
savage.  For  the  first  time,  perhaps,  in  the  history  of  the  world,  human 
beings  had  been  bred  and  regulated  like  valuable  stock,  with  as  much 
care  as  is  placed  upon  the  best  horses  and  cattle."  Mmiti:,nmfry  Ad- 
vertiser, Aug.  13,  1863;  quoted  in  "  Documentary  History  of  Reconstruc- 
tion," Vol.  I,  p.  89:  "Nine  hundred  of  [the  ncproesl  assembled  (near 
Mobile)  to  consider  their  comiition,  their  rights  and  their  duties  under 
the  new  state  of  existence  upon  which  they  have  been  so  suddenly 
launched.  .  .  .  After  long  talk  and  careful  deliberation,  this  meeting 
resolved,  by  a  vote  of  700  to  200,  that  they  had  made  a  practical 
trial  for  three  months  of  theii  freedom  which  the  war  had  bequeathed 
10  them;   that  its  realities  were  far   from  being  so  flattering  as  their 


296  SOCIAL    FOKCi.S    I\    A.Ml.RICAX    HiSTCiRV 

Those  wlu,  had  forced  tlie  ballot  into  his  hands  now 
set  about  drivinn;  and  deceiving  him  into  doing  their 
work.  One  of  the  means  to  this  end  was  the  I'reedmen's 
I^meau,  one  ol  those  strange  combinations  of  cant  and 
crookedness,  philanthropy  and  i)r()rits.  piety  and  plunder, 
that  are  peculiar  to  capitalism. 

The  form  of  the  law  creating  the  Bureau  was  cast  in 
terms  of  philanthropy.     It  was  to  be  the  most  gigantic 
piece  of  paternalism  ever  attempted  by  anv  government 
'I  he  most   intimate  details  of   the   lives  of   the  negroes 
were  confided  to  its  care.     Their  marriages,  their  busi- 
ness   transactions,    tlieir    food,  homes,  clothing,  wages, 
education,  and  religion  were  to  be  supervised,  regulated 
and  adjusted  by  the  agents  of    this  benevolent  insti- 
tution.'    The  War  Department  issued  supplies  for  the 
destitute,  i-nd  vast  sums  from  various  sources  were  placed 
at  the  disposal  of  the  Bureau.     That  sufTering  was  re- 
heved,  schools  established,  many  impositions  prevented 
and  much  general  charitable  work  done  by  the  Freed- 
men's  Bureau   is   indisputable.^     But   that   such   work 
was  its  main  object  after  the  first  year  of  its  existence 
none  but  the  most  prejudiced  of  its  friends  could  claim.' 

imagination  had  painted  it  .  .  .  ..nd  finally  that  their  'last  state  was 
N  .rsc  than  ihc.r  nrst,   and  it  was  their  deliberate  conclusion  that  their 

Zh  tirt'^  T  ;"'"^''"'   "^""^'   '"""^  ^°  -^-"  ^°  '^<^  homes 
«h,c  h  they  had  abandoned  ,n  the  moment  of  excitement,  and  go  to  work 

aKa.n__under  the.r  old  masters."     (Earner,  "  Reconstruction  in  Missis 

^■PI",      p.    124:     'The    black    iwpulation    of    Mississippi    de.reased 

Y].    -';-cn     .860    and    ,866.  ...     The   Southern    s    sai.l    ,h  v 

had    <l,ed    from  disease    and    starvation    resulting    from    their   sudden 

en,anr,pat,on,  and  the  explanation  was  not  wl  ully  without  foundation  - 

^     Documentary  History  of  Reconstruction,"  \o|.  I.  p,>    ,,o-uo 

-\\.V.  M    DuHois.  "The  Soul  of  lilack   Folk."  chapter  on  "  Freed- 

mcn  s  lUireau     ;  also  in  Alhwtic  Monthlv,  \'n!   LXXXVII   -.   -f:o 

-  Rhodes,  "History  of  United  States,"  Vol.  VI,  p.  185.  "    "^"'' 


ma 


Ri:CO\STkL(TI()\ 


-')7 


With  its  hundrfd-,  of  agents  possosfd  of  the  power  to 
prant  or  withhold  nearly  all  tlic  rieeessities,  comforts. 
and  luxuries  of  life  from  the  enfranchised  i)laek>,  it  con- 
stituted a  perfect  machine  for  'he  control  of  the  nr^rro 
vote.'  It  was  so  used  to  the  e.\treme  limit  of  that  power. 
The  agents  elected  themselves  and  their  friends  to  oflue 
everywhere.'-  Bureau  funds  were  used  directly  for 
political  corruption,  and  its  whole  far-reaching  influence 
was  always  oi)enly  used  as  a  jiolitical  asset.'' 

Interwoven  with  the  I'reedmen's  Bureau  and  the 
military  organization  in  tlie  work  of  controlling  the 
negro  vote  were  several  >ecret  oath-hound  conspiratory 
organizations,  the  chief  of  which,  and  the  pattern  for  the 
rest,  was  the  Union  League.  The  Bureau  agents  were 
the  organizers  of  this  society.  "By  the  end  of  iSOj 
nearly  the  entire  black  population  was  Ijrought  under 
its  influence."  *  Solemn  oaths  bound  the  members  to 
vote  for  the  League  m^minees.  All  the  methods  of 
secret  terrorism,  boycotts,  and  personal  violence  were 
used  to  enforce  this  political  obedience.''  The  organizers 
of  these  societies  did  not  overlook  any  opportunities 
for  petty  graft  in  the  form  of  dues  and  fees  that  could  be 
dragged  from  '..he  deluded  and  terrorized  blacks.' 

All  sorts  of  despicable  swindles  were  perpetrated  upon 


•  Hilary  Herbert,  "Why  the  -Solid  South,"  p,  17.  «  IblJ.,  p.  18. 
'Minority    Rept.    Howard    Invest  ii.'al  ion ;     House    Kept.,    .\o.    121, 

41st  ConR.,  2d  Sess.,  pp.  47-5,?. 

*  "  Documentary  Hi.  orv  of  Reconstruction,"  Vol.  H,  p.  3. 

"  //'/(/..  p.  20.  The  Freedmen's  Riireau  commissioners  in  Florida 
organized  a  Lincoln  Hrotherhood,  charging  "an  initiation  fee  of  from  one 
to  two  dollars  and  fiftv  rents  ner  month  "  Tr-.Kr 
Bag  Rule  in  Florida,"  pp.  28-29. 


T..u_   u-,.ii —    "n  •■ 


2o8  SOCIAL    FOkCi:S    IN    AMKRIC.W    HISTORY 

tlif.sL-  "wards  of  the  nation"  by  their  grasi)inR  guardians. 
The  story  that  ("on^'rt-ss  had  voted  '-forty  acres  and 
a  mule"  to  every  former  slave  was  almost  universally 
(inulated  and  helieve<l  amon;,'  the  ne,L,'roes.  Ked-white- 
and-blue  pe^'s  were  peddled  to  theconlKhng  blacks,  with 
tile  tale  that  any  land  marked  with  them  would  belong 
to  the  owner  of  the  pc^s.' 

The  army  of  men  that  were  thus  marshaling  the 
negroes  for  the  Republican  party,  organi/ing.  voting, 
and  robbing  them,  was  made  up  in  i)art  of  N'orlhern 
adventures  ("carpet-baggers")  and  so-called  Southern 
"Union  men"  ("scalawags").  These  tt)ok  tlie  spoils 
of  odke,  and  made  the  stale  government  simply  means 
for  private  i^rofit. 

It  is  probably  imi)ossible  to  exaggerate  the  corruption 
of  these  Reconstruction  governments.  They  voted 
enormous  issues  of  bonds,  and  coolly  pocketed  the  money 
for  which  they  were  sold.  They  doubled,  cjuadrupled, 
and  multiplied  state  debts  twenty  fold,  and  this  without 
creating  a  single  public  improvement.-  They  rai.sed 
the  ta.xes  until,  in  Mississii)pi,  20  per  cent  of  the  acreage 
was  sold  to  satisfy  the  tax  collect(.r.''  Legislatures 
voted  fabulous  sums  for  "supplies"  for  their  members.'' 

All  this  was  inflicted  upon  a  land  devastatc(i  by  war 
and  in  most  desperate  need  of  every  resource  avail- 
able for  the  establishment  of  the  most  elementary  social 
needs.     All  this  was  part  of  the  "original  accumulation" 


'  "  Documentary  History  of  Reconstruction,"  Vol.  I.  pp.  ,^50-360. 
*  Daniel   H.   (liamherlain.   "Reconstruction   in  South   Carolina,"  in 
Atlantic  .\fonthl\\  Vol.  I.XXX\'II,  j).  477. 

'  Woodrow  Wilson.  "History  of  American  People,"  Vol.  V,  [>.  47. 
*"  Documcuiar>  IlisLory  of  Keconsiruclion,  '  \ol.  II,  pp.  59-72. 


RF.CONSTRrCTIOX 


299 


of  the  political  ;inci  protit-niukinK  powor  of  tin-  i)rcscnt 
ruliriK  class. 

The  character  of  these  Reconstruction  governments 
is  sometimes  olTereci  as  a  proof  of  the  evils  of  nej^ro  suf- 
fraj^e.  It  should  never  be  forgotten  that  it  was  not  the 
!)lack,  but  the  wiiite,  man  who  maintained  these  govern- 
ments, by  military  force,  ton^piracy,  and  chicanery, 
and  that  the  white  alone  prolitid  from  them.'  .\t  the 
first  signs  of  independence  by  the  negro,  even  though 
that  independence  found  no  further  expression  than  a 
demand  for  a  share  of  the  plunder.-  interest  in  negro  suf- 
frage by  the  Reconstructionists  waned.  When  some  of 
the  negroes  joined  with  a  remnant  of  decent  whites, 
the  Xorthern  philanthropists  withdrew  the  military 
suj->port,  and  the  Reconstruction  governments  collapsed.' 

A  parenthetic  word  is  here  necessary  before  discussing 
the  further  rea.sons  for  the  fall  of  Reconstruction  govern- 
ments and  policy.  It  would  be  as  foolish  to  follow  those 
Southern  historians  who  would  have  it  that  the  evils 
of  the  Reconstruction  governments  were  due  to  the 
immorality  and  vindictivencss  of  the  carjiet-baggers 
and  politicians,  as  to  follow  those  Northern  writers  who 
make  of  the  whole  thing  a  benevolent  action  on  behalf 
of  the  negro,  alloyed  only  by  a  patriotic  ambition  to 
"save  the  Union." 

Even  the  Congressional  leaders  were  l;ut  instruments 
working  in  the  interest  of  newly  enthroned  capitalism, 
—  that  royal  heir  whose  birth  we  celebrated  in  the  War 
of    1S12.     The  way   to   that   throne   led   through   four 


'  "Documentary  History  of  Reconstruction,"  Vol.  II.  p.  i^. 

'  W.ill.ire,  "r.Tn)i't-na<_'  Ruk-  in  Florida."  n.  in; 

'  "Documentary  History  of  Reconstruction,"  Vol.  II,  p.  35. 


JOG  SOCIAL   FORCKS    IN    AMKRIC.W    HISTOKV 

bloody  vc;irs  of  Civil  War.  followed  by  three  times  as 
many  more  years  of  political  anarchy,  bribery,  oppres- 
sion, conspiracy,  hypocrisy,  violent  disregard  of  law  and 
order,  and  the  creation  of  a  murderous  race  and  sec  tional 
hatred,  the  terrible  depths  of  which  we  have  not  yet 
sounded. 

These  words  imply  individual  moral  judgments  and 
responsibility.  This  is  necessary  until  a  new  industrial 
basis  of  society  shall  de\eIop  a  vocabulary  ba.sed  on 
social  resjionsibility. 

Vet  it  would  be  false  to  assume  that  a  majority,  or  even 
the  liMders  of  the  dominant  faction  in  Congress,  were 
consciously  moved  by  a  desire  to  place  the  great  capital- 
ists in  i)ower.  Some  were  fanatically  sincere  abolition- 
ists, earnestly  and  intensely  belicMng  that  they  were 
helping  the  negro.  Even  Thad  Stevens  .seems  to  have 
been  to  scmie  extent  controlled  by  this  motive. 

They  were  "good"  men  when  judged  by  individual 
standards  of  morality  and  responsibility.  Looked  at 
from  a  little  broader  social  point  of  view,  the  vocabulary 
of  denunciation  and  abhorrence  seems  inadequate  when 
applied  to  their  actions.  \'iewed  with  a  still  wider 
social  and  historical  vision,  they  are  seen  to  be  instru- 
ments in  the  process  by  which  the  capitalist  class  at- 
tained to  a  pcnver  without  which  it  could  not  have 
worked  out  its  destiny  and  prepared  the  way  to  the 
better  things  that  are  still  possible. 

One  of  the  obstacles  to  the  carrying  out  of  the  Recon- 
struction program  was  the  Supreme  Court.  This  body  was 
still  dominated  by  a  combination  of  small  capitalist  and 
chattel  slave  interests  and  ideas.  Because  that  power 
generally   safeguarded   the   interests  of   the  exploiting 


!l 


►*.»^Ti/^-'/.f,3>^r--'sr 


RECONSTRUCTION 


301 


class,  this  Court  hud  l)ct.-n  i)CTniitlc(i  to  retain  its  usurped 
power  to  declare  laws  unconstitutional.  It  now  became 
evid"nt  that  this  power  would  be  used  to  nullify  some  of 
the  Reconstruction  legislation.  Another  "i)alace  revo- 
lution" was  necessary. 

Accordingly  on  the  27th  of  March.  icSo8,  Congress 
passed  a  law  threatening  the  members  of  the  Supreme 
Court  with  fines  and  mi[)risonment  if  they  interfere.', 
with  the  carrying  out  of  such  legislation,  and  notifying 
that  body  that  this  legislation  was  not  subject  t(»  review 
as  to  its  constitutionality. 

The  Supreme  Court  at  once  recognized  the  right,  ( 
rather  the  power  (which  in  class  government  is  the  same 
thing),  of  Congress  to  so  curb  the  judicial  department  of 
the  government,  and  dismissed  the  cases  which  were 
already  before  it.' 

The  (\)urt  and  Congress  by  this  action  completely 
punctured  the  bubble  upop  which  the  autocratic  power 
of  the  Supreme  Court  rests,  and  demonstrated  that  the 
Supreme  Court  only  declares  laws  unconstitutional  when 
it  is  to  the  int-  r..--t  of  the  ruling  class  to  permit  it  to 
exercise  that  power. 

Several  years  later,  when  powerful  class  interests  had 
no  further  use  for  such  legislation,  the  Court  was  per- 
mitted to  receive  another  case  involving  these  laws,  and 
to  then  declare  them  unconstitutional  (October.  1875).- 

By  the  time  the  negro  became  dissatisfied  with  the 
role  of  a  blind  and  dumb  political  tool,  the  great  capital- 

»  Rhodes,  "Historj-  of  the  United  States,"  Vol.  Vf,  p.  74;  Cow?. 
Globe,  Jan.   i  j,  1868,  p.  476.     Sue  esiK-cially  the  Sf)cech  of  Frederick  T. 

ii;:i::^::'_:;.  :vii,  Jail,   ^s,   lOlJO. 

'  U.  S.  vs.  Reese,  92  U.  S.  Reports,  p.  214. 


302 


SOCIAL   FORCES   IX   AMERICAN   HISTORY 


ists  of  the  North  had  gained  such  complete  domination 
over  the  Rational  government  and  jwhtical  machines 
that  they  could  afford  to  relax  their  violent  rule  in  the 
South.  The  trooj)s  were  withdrawn,  and  military  rule 
was  ended  by  Hayes  in  1876,  and  the  whole  Reconstruc- 
tion society  crumbled  and  fell.  The  negroes  were  dis- 
franchised, at  first  by  force  and  fraud,  and  then  later  by 
laws.  Meanwhile  their  erstwhile  RepubUcan  defenders, 
who  had  once  thrust  that  ballot  into  their  hands  at  the 
point  of  the  bayonet,  now  passed  by  on  the  other  side 
without  i)rotest. 

These  interests  could  well  afford  to  ignore  the  South. 
They  had  found  a  richer  field  of  plunder.  A  saturnalia 
of  corruption  now  centered  around  the  national  govern- 
ment, and  had  extended  to  state  and  municipal  admin- 
istrations. It  was  not  simply  that  the  powers  of  taxa- 
tion were  used  to  convert  the  national  treasury  into  a 
mammoth  widow's  cruse,  from  which  the  privileged  few 
stole  almost  countless  sums.  The  national  government 
was  also  used  to  bestow  empires  of  land  and  piled  up 
millions  of  dollars  upon  railroad  corporations,  who  in 
turn  were  to  use  this  national  plunder  only  as  a  base 
for  still  further  and  greater  frauds.  In  the  stock  and 
bond  market  it  was  the  time  of  the  Tweed  Ring  in  New 
York  and  the  Credit  Mobilier  in  the  West.  To  merely 
enumerate  the  more  flagrant  frauds  of  this  time,  when  the 
fortunes  of  to-day  we-e  being  founded,  would  fill  the 
pages  of  a  larger  volume  than  this  one. 

Out  of  this  corruption  the  great  capitalist  class  drew 
the  funds  that  enabled  it  to  control  the  machinery  of 
politics.  The  horrors  of  Reconstruction  had  engendered 
a  sectional  nalrcd  :so  ncrce  as  to  reiidei  impobbible  any 


RECOXSTRUCTION 


303 


political  combination  across  the  line  that  divided  the 
North  from  the  South.  The  Roimblican  party  had  made 
itself  the  object  of  a  peculiar  sort  of  patriotism,  based 
on  its  claim  to  have  saved  the  Union,  and  this  made 
possible  its  dominance  for  a  generation.' 

Great  and  complex  political  machines  had  been  built 
up  throughout  the  country,  r..'sting  on  political  {)atrun- 
age  and  illicit  favors  of  government,  which  controlled 
nominations  and  directed  elections.  In  the  South  a 
race  war  had  been  fostered  that  embittered  and  strength- 
ened sectional  antagonism,  and  helped  to  maintain  the 
divisions  among  the  voters  so  valuable  to  a  ruling  class. 

By  such  methods  and  measures  did  the  present  ruling 
class  obtain  its  industrial  and  political  power. 

» Ostrogorsky,  "Democracy  and  the  Origm  of  Political  Parties," 
Vol.  II,  pp.  126-127. 


CHAPTER  XXIV 


THE    TRIUMPH   AND   DECADENCE    OF   CAPITALISM 

Events  since  the  days  of  Reconstruction  are  still  too 
close  to  alTord  that  persi)ective  view  necessary  to  isolate 
the  historically  important  from  the  sensationally  strik- 
ing. Only  the  length  and  vision  of  years,  or  the  fore- 
sight of  the  prophet,  can  determine  with  certainty  the 
events  and  the  forces  that  form  institutions  and  shape 
society,  and  thereby  constitute  the  stulT  of  which  his- 
tory is  made. 

The  one  great  fact  of  these  years  has  been  the  stu- 
pendous development  of  concentrated  capitalism.  This 
has  been  based  upon  a  continuous  rapid  transformation 
of  th  tools  with  which  society  does  its  work.  Invention 
has  crowded  fast  upon  invention.  The  whole  wonder- 
working cabinet  of  the  electrician  has  been  unlocked  and 
its  contents  put  at  the  service  of  man.  Almost  every 
department  of  industry  has  been  revolutionized  over  and 
over  again  in  this  period,  and  ever>'  revolution  brought 
greater  power  of  production. 

The  network  of  railroads  begun  at  the  close  of  the  war 
has  been  extended  until  it  has  covered  the  nation  as  with 
a  web,  whose  radiating  threads  of  steel  mark  the  indus- 
trial centers.  To  the  building  of  these  railroads  an 
empire  of  land,  larger  than  the  territory  of  any  nalit)n 
of  western  Europe  (about  live  times  as  large  as  the  state 

304 


TKIUMI'II   AM)    l>i:c.\Di:.\CI-:   OF   CAI'ITALLSM      305 

of  Ohio)  has  been  given.  To  this  impcri;'.!  <rnift  the 
same  palern;il  government  added  ca>h  ^uh>idies  and 
guarantees  of  bonds  amounting  to  huinh-eds  of  milHons 
more.  To  this  has  still  been  added  piled  up  millions  of 
bounties  and  bonu.ses  by  state  and  local  governments 
until  it  is  well  within  the  truth  to  >ay  that  suih  funds, 
St)  given,  have  been  suflicient  to  build  and  e(iuip  every 
railroad  in  the  United  States  as  they  were  built  and 
equii)i)ed  in  the  early  eighties. 

These  roads  were  then  permitted  by  the  government 
to  become  instruments  of  private  jjrolit. 

In  those  years  steel  displaced  iron,  owing  to  the  intro- 
duction first  of  the  Bessemer  and  then  of  the  open 
hearth  process.  The  development  of  the  Lake  Superior 
ore  deposits,  the  cheapening  of  lake  transportation,  and 
the  shifting  of  the  market  for  iron  \  tward.  with  the 
growth  of  the  railway  systems  and  the  .juilding  of  great 
cities,  caused  the  center  of  the  steel  trade  to  move  from 
Pittsburg  to  the  point  where  these  S(v  -ces  of  demand 
and  sup{)ly  found  an  equilibrium.  This  point  now  -?ems 
to  be  located  near  the  southcn  end  of  Lake  Michigan. 
With  the  United  States  as  a  leading  factor  in  the  in- 
ternational steel  trade  an  international  steel  trust  was 
inevitable. 

More  and  more  the  population  drifted  citj'ward.  As 
industry  after  industry  —  weaving,  shoemaking,  manu- 
facturing of  clothing,  preparation  of  meat,  and  a  host  of 
others  —  left  the  rural  household  for  the  city  factory, 
the  workers  perforce  followed  their  work.  At  first 
the  rural  population  was  merely  outdistanced  in  rate  of 
growth.  But  the  census  of  iqio  shows  a  positive  decline 
in  rural  oopuiatiuii  in  the  predominant  agricultural  states. 


;o6 


SOCIAL    FOKCKS    IX    AMKRICW    HISTORY 


This  growth  of  the  cities  \v;is  accclt-ratcd  by  the  .nighty 
lloud  ul  iminigralion.  T'  was  a  succession  of  waves 
in  this  coming  of  the  j)ei  .  of  oUier  countries.  Irish, 
(jernians,  and  Scandinavians  formed  the  iirst  battaUons. 
'liiese,  lik.(,'  liiose  ihaL  had  lieen  coming  since  colonial 
(hi>s,  pressed  forward  lo  tlie  frontier  and  were  swiftly 
amalgamated.  Later  came  a  series  of  waves  from  south- 
ern and  eastern  Europe,  Italians,  the  mixture  of  nation- 
alities t'rom  within  Austrian  boundaries,  and  a  great  army 
of  exiles  from  the  Russian  ghettoes. 

When  these  reached  America,  the  frontier  was  gone. 
I'ree  land  wa.>  no  more.  Agriculture,  instead  of  swiftly 
expanding,  was  already  declining.  This  new  army  of 
col(-nist^  was  caught  up  in  the  internal  currents  of  pop- 
ulation already  llowing  strongly  toward  the  cities,  and 
settled  in  ever  growing  colonies  that  resisted  amalgama- 
tion and  endured  a  degree  of  exploitation  and  misery 
hitherto  unknown  in  .\merica. 

Not  e\en  the  Homestead  Law,  creating  its  millions  of 
small  freeholders,  could  pre\«  nt  the  forces  of  concen- 
tration producing  their  result.  The  census  of  1910 
again  shows  that  even  this  wholesale  apportionment  of 
land  by  the  government,  the  division  into  small  farms 
of  great  sections  of  railroad  holdings,  and  the  breaking 
up  of  the  Southern  plantation,  were  unable,  for  more  than 
a  generaticm,  to  chetk  the  effect  of  the  law  of  concen- 
tration of  ownership  in  this,  the  slowest  of  all  industries 
to  resjiond  to  the  pressure  of  social  forces. 

From  the  beginning  the  farmer  of  the  Western  prairies 
formed  a  less  self-sutTirient  industrial  unit  than  the  small 
pioneer  farmer  of  the  earlier  and  more  eastern  stage. 
The  Western  farmer  was  a  grower  of  staple  crops  for 


TRIUMF'II   AND    DECADENXE   OF   CAI'ITALIS\r      307 

the  market.     Railroads,  elevators,  and  marketing;  facili- 
ties   were   e.-ential    iii>trumeiits    in    the    production    of 
these     commodities.     These    instruments     became     the 
means  of  his  exploitation,  and  ai^ainst   them  he  turned 
his   wrath.     In    three   great    uprisings,  -the    "CJranger 
Movement"  of  the  late  seventies,  the  I'ojjulist   uiirishig 
of  some  ten  years  later,  then  the  Hryan   Democracy  of 
iSq6,— the  farmers,  aided  by  an  incoherent  mass  of  dis- 
contented   members    of    the    crumbling    small-capitalist 
class,  sought  to  capture  the  powers  of  government.     In 
each  of  these  uprisings  the  old  cry  of  the  debtor  class 
for  cheap  money  that  had  been  heard  ever  since  colonial 
da\s  was  brought  to  the  fore;  but  these  later  movements 
in  their  demands  for  governiuental  action  in  fields  of 
industry  emphasized  the  importance  of  the  industrial 
changes  that  had  taken  place. 

Kach  of  these  efforts  went  down  to  defeat.  The  class 
of  great  cai)italists  was  in  control  of  nation,  state,  and 
municipalities,  and  of  the  executive,  legislative,  and  espe- 
cially the  judicial  departments  of  each  and  all.  At  no 
other  time  in  this  country,  and  never  in  any  other  land, 
has  this  class  enjoyed  such  complete  domination.  Its 
ideas  and  ideals  made  and  modeierl  social  institutions. 
It  created  a  society  after  its  own  image,  and  looked  upon 
Its  work  in  boi^ibastic  spread-eagleism  and  pronounced 
it  good.  As  the  linal  triumph  of  capitalist  evolution, 
its  institutions  deserve  analysis. 

It  was  the  time  when  the  American  dollarocracy  of  beef, 
pills,  soap,  oil,  or  railroads  became  the  worldwide  syn- 
onym for  the  parvenu  and  the  upstart.  In  literature 
it  produced  the  rheap,  wood-pulp,  sensational  daily, 
the    Neu>    York    Ledger    type   of    magazine,    the    dime 


;o8 


SOCIAL    FOKCKS    IN    A.MKKICAX    IIISTORV 


iidxlI,  and  the  works  of  Mary  J.  Ilolnu-s,  Laura  Jean 
Lihhy,  and  '"'I'lu-  1)ui1r's>."  In  industry  ils  dominant 
)":;,'ures  were  J.  (iould  and  Jim  I'"i>kc.  In  politics  it 
exolvL'd  tlic  "machine,"  the  ward  heeler,  and  the  political 
boss,  with  Tweed  as  the  finished  sami)le.  Its  religious 
life  found  expression  in  >ensational  re\'\als  upon  the 
one  hand,  and  a  cheap  negative  atheism  upon  the  other. 
In  public  architectu'C  it  erected  the  hideous  piles  that 
now  dishgure  our  cities,  and  for  private  homes  it  added 
the  t_\i)e  of  the  "(jueen  Anne  front"  and  the  '"  Mary  Ann 
back."  Its  triumphs  in  sculpture  were  the  bronze  and 
casL-iron  dogs  with  which  the  millionaire  decorated  his 
front  lawn.  It  moved  forward  to  the  music  of  Moody 
and  Sankey  h\-mns  and  ragtime  bands,  while  its  one  con- 
tribution to  tlie  pictorial  art  of  the  world  was  the  chromo. 

There  was  a  steady  jirogress  in  industrial  concentra- 
tion, but  there  are  certain  distinct  stages  worthy  of 
notice.  The  ten  year.-^  following  the  Civil  War  miglit 
])e  properly  designated  as  the  period  of  the  domination 
of  the  "large  industry,"  the  ne.\t  fifteen  years  as  that 
of  the  "great  industry,"  in  contrast  with  the  monopolistic 
stage  prevailing  since  that  date.  These  phrases  are 
indehnite,  and  do  not  fully  e.\i)ress  the  qualitative  as 
well  as  the  quantitative  differences  that  distinguish  these 
periods. 

Until  the  panic  of  T873.  the  dominant  industrial  unit 
(not  the  most  numerous,  but  the  one  of  which  the  ruling 
portion  of  industry  was  composed)  had  a  capitalization 
of  between  fifty  and  five  hundred  thousand  dollars.  The 
number  of  firms  was  increasing  (juite  rapidly  in  all  but 
a  few  iiiies.  There  was  still  room  at  the  top,  and  a  host 
struggling  upward. 


TRIUMl'lI    AM)    DECADKNCi:   ( -F   CAi  ITALISM 


309 


When  in  1S73  tl^e  "mad  gallop"  of  industry  ended 
once  more  in  the  ditch  of  an  industrial  crisis,  with  Jay 
Cooke  and  Sons,  the  great  bankers  and  governmental 
agents  of  the  war  i)eriod,  at  the  bottom  of  the  mess,  it 
was  the  last  general  panic  of  capitalism.  Henceforth 
there  were  to  be  those  who  were  to  stand  outside  indus- 
trial crises. 

In  1873  the  average  capitalization  of  the  firms  failing 
was  forty-four  thousand  dollars.  Twenty  years  later, 
with  the  average  industrial  unit  fully  three  times  as 
large,  there  came  anotlier  crisis,  and  the  average  capital- 
ization of  the  firms  failing  was  less  than  twenty  thousand 
dollars.  In  the  five  years  from  1893  to  1897  only  five 
firms,  with  a  capitalization  of  five  hundred  thousand 
dollars  or  over,  failed. 

The  gods  of  our  industrial  world  were  now  safe  upon 
a  monopolistic  Olympus  above  the  storms  that  had  once 
overthrown  them.  A  few  years  later,  in  1908  and  1909. 
they  were  able  to  largely  direct  the  tempest,  and  even 
to  hurl  its  lightnings  at  those  who  had  presumed  to  dis- 
pute their  divinity. 

The  panic  of  1873  marked  the  clima.x  and  collapse 
of  expanding  and  competitive  industry.  This  is  shown 
most  graphical!}-  jy  the  table  on  the  following  page. 

Forty  years  of  the  most  rapid  growth  in  production, 
the  doubling  of  the  population,  and  the  conquest  of  the 
international  markets  were  accompanied  with  a  oecrease 
in  the  number  of  firms  in  the  leading  industries. 

Even  these  figures  give  but  little  idea  of  the  tremendous 
concentration  of  power  that  has  taken  place  within  the 
capitalist  rlas=.  itself.  The  periodica!  press  is  now  filled 
with  descriptions  of " inner  circles,"  "spheres  of  interest." 


3'o 


SOCIAL  r(jkci;s  in  amkricax  history 


;in<l  all  tlu'  multitude  of  methods  by  which  a  little  group 
complclcl}-  ilotniiKite  the  linancial  and  industrial  life 
of  a  nation. 


MMIiKK   OF    r.STAHLISIIM    NTS 


1850   l.SdO    1870   1S80    1890   1900 


AKrimltunil  Inii)lcfnfnts 
CaqKls  and  Ruks     .     . 
CDtlon  (iooiis 

(Jhiss 

Honiiry  and  Knit  (ioods 
Iron  and  Steel      .     .     . 

Leather 

Paper  and  Wood  I'ulp  . 
Shipljuildin^;  .... 
Silk  and  Silk  (ioods 
SlauKliter'd  &  .M't  P'kg. 
Woolen  {Joods  .  .  . 
-Malt  Liquors  .... 

Totals     .... 


116 

ICKJ4 

04 

4(^8 

6686 

443 

95i 

'>7 
•85 

*  431  I 


.'  I  1 6 

•:'3 

log  I 

1 1 .' 

n;7 

54^; 

5188^ 

535  j 

''75 

13^ 

•!5tJ 

I  :6o 

I  26q  , 


J076 
^15 
OS'' 
;oi 
24S 
7^6 

75^>g 

677 

6g4 
86 

768 
280 1 

IQ72 


«943 
195 

1005 
211 

359 

6qq 

2628 

742 

2188 

382 

87^ 

1990 

2igi 


QIO 

173 
905 
294 
7g6 
6()g 

1787 
640  I 

1006  i 
472 

•3^'7 

1248! 


715 
^i5 

1055 
35S 

921 

668 
1306 

763 
1116 

483 
iij4 
103s 
1509 


I,?, 514    13/11O    I0,34()    18405    11,617    II>I93 


The  period  between  the  panics  of  1873  and  1894  was 
still  fiercely  competitive,  but  it  was  the  beginning  of  the 
competition  of  cannibalistic  absorption,  not  for  the 
conquest  of  new  Ilelds.  It  was  the  war  to  determine 
who  should  survive  and  dominate  within  the  national 
market.  When  all  industries,  including  railroads,  were 
in  a  tooth  and  claw  fight  for  survival,  some  rather  start- 
ling weapons  were  discovered  and  brought  into  play. 
These  were  the  palmy  days  of  rebates,  secret  rates,  and 
the  various  devices  that  gave  rise  to  a  whole  system  of 
repressive  legislation  after  thev  had  accomplished  their 
purpose  and  were  of  no  value  to  the  ruling  powers. 


i| 


TRIIMI'H    AND    DMC ADIACK   OF    C APIT AI.ISM 


oil 


After  the  panic  of  1894,  the  industrial  battle  entered 
into  another  phase.  The  field  was  now  tilled;  [hv  num- 
ber of  really  iffective  competitors  in  each  indu-^try  w<is 
so  small  that  the  imminence  of  possible  destruction  and 
deglutition  became  evident  to  all.  So  the  profit  seekers 
decided  to  hunt  in  packs  instead  of  as  individuals,  and 
the  trust  api)eared  as  a  dominant  figure  of  industry. 
The  creation  and  filling  to  repletion  of  the  national 
market  brought  about  a  situation  similar  to  that  exist- 
ing in  the  South  before  the  war.  There  was  a  demand 
for  expansion.  The  Spanish  American  War.  the  in- 
vasion of  China,  the  Panama  Canal,  the  ransacking  of 
the  dark  corners  of  the  earth  for  trade  opportunities, 
followed. 

The  century-long  march  across  the  continent  was 
ended.  The  frontier  of  unoccupied  land  was  no  more. 
With  the  birth  of  the  factory  system  at  the  close  of  the 
Napoleonic  wars.  American  society  turned  its  face  in- 
ward. Now  having  conquered  the  continent  and  ari.sen 
to  another  stage  of  development,  the  curve  of  the  as- 
cending spiral  swung  once  more  outside  of  national 
boundaries  and  became  involved  in  the  sweep  of  inter- 
national forces.  That  this  movement  was  that  of  a 
spiral  rather  than  of  a  pendulum  is  shown  by  the  fact 
that  this  second  entry  into  international  politics  was  with 
a  wholly  different  attitude  than  that  which  had  been  left 
behind  when  American  capitalism  broke  loose  from 
Europe. 

In  these  earlier  days  American  society  was  but  a  play- 
thing of  forces  outside  its  own  boundaries,  owing  its 
existence  as  a  nation  as  much  to  conflicts  and  ie.ilousies 
between  other  nations  as  to  its  own  power  of  assertion. 


3" 


SOCIAL    roKC'KS    IN    A.MIIKIC.W    IIISTOKV 


Xow  it  returned  to  become  one  of  the  most  power- 
ful factors  in  the  >tru^'gle  for  worldwiije  commercial 
domination. 

The  Rise  of  Labor 

When  the  multitude  of  workers  were  reK'a>ed  from 
mi'.itarv  service,  and  returned  to  industrial  lite,  they  were 
confronted  with  a  transformation  that  had  been  wrought 
while  they  fou.Ljht.  The  individual  emi)loyer  had  largely 
given  way  to  the  corporation.  (Ireat  masses  of  workers 
were  selling  their  labor  to  a  common  master.  The  rail- 
roads especially  were  creating  :im\  demanding  a  body 
of  fluid  labor  power  drawn  hither  and  thither  in  search 
of  employment. 

The  Civil  War  had  aboli>hcd  the  system  by  which 
the  master  hunted  down  the  slave.  Those  who  had 
fought  that  war  returned  home  to  find  a  society,  one  of 
whose  new  and  most  striking  features  was  a  body  of 
workers  hunting  for  masters. 

These  new  conditions  affecting  men  so  many  of  whom 
were  familiar  with  the  etTectivcness  of  military  discipline 
could  not  but  produce  an  organized  labor  movement. 
Many  of  the  powerful  *' International"  unions  of  to-day 
were  born  in  the  decade  following  the  surrender  at 
Appomattox. 

These  first  unions  were  soon  drawn  together  in  the 
National  Labor  Union,  that  held  its  first  convention 
in  September,  1866.^ 

After  a  couple  of  years  of  growth  this  party  was 
weakened  by  being  drawn  into  a  "Labor  Reform  Party." 

p.  227. 


li! : 


TRUMril    AND    DF.CAUFNt  r.   or  CAPITALISM 


313 


wliich  \va^  Mckiii"^  to  n-prcMiit  tlic  iiitcri'^ts  of  the  stnall 
cai)ilali>t  and  the  working  t  lass,  without  any  very  dear 
un(lL"r>laiuliiij^  ot  the  inliTc-N  ot  i-itht-r. 

The  "hard  time>"ot'  iSj.v  tlurefore.  hmnd  the  work- 
ing I  kiss  ahno>t  ('oriii>Ktely  uimr^ani/ed.  Tl  '  first 
move  of  the  enij)lo\er^,  alTerted  hy  the  crisis,  was  U) 
reduce  want's.  The  unorganized  workers  could  offer 
no  effective  resistance,  and  the  return  for  hihor  was 
forced  h)wer  and  lower  until  in  iSj^),  when  the  Centennial 
of  American  !ndei)endeiue  was  celebrated,  the  .\nierican 
workers  were  suffering  beneath  an  indu>trial  tyranny 
worse  than  any  imposed  by  Knglisli  kings,  and.  in  many 
ways,  wor^e  than  that  endured  by  the  negro  slaves  in  the 
South  before  the  Civil  War. 

So  helpless  were  the  workers  that  when,  in  1877,  the 
Pennsylvania  railroad  announced  a  still  further  reduc- 
tion of  10  per  cent  in  the  already  less  than  lining  wage, 
there  was  no  organized  body  to  resist.  VV'hile  there 
were  grumblings  and  threatenings  of  revolt,  the  day  set 
for  the  retluction  came  and  went  with  no  action  on  the 
part  of  the  workers,  .\nother  day  came  and  went,  and 
the  crew  of  a  train  running  into  Martinsburg.  West 
Virginia,  left  their  posts  as  they  drew  into  the  division 
end  and  walked  out.  declaring  it  to  be  no  worse  to  starve 
idle  than  to  starve  working.  Then  one  of  those  strange 
waves  that  seizes  those  on  the  verge  of  desperation  swept 
across  the  country.  The  spirit  of  revolt  leaped  along 
the  telegraph  wires  from  city  to  city,  until  from  the 
Mississippi  to  the  Atlantic  the  wheels  of  industry  were 
almost  paralyzed.  Then  Labor  learned  one  more  reason 
■«'hy  great  capitalists  wish  to  control  a  powerful,  unitied 
national  government.     For  the  hisl   Lime  in  American 


i'4 


SOCIAL    FOUCKS    I\    AMCklCW    MI^loKV 


history  worki-rs  in  luiifDrni  ■^h()t  down  workers  in  the 
^rimy  Karnu-nts  of  toil  that  prolits  might  grow  and  wage 
sliivts  bf  kt  pi  in  ^ubmis.sion. 

The  .ski\ts  had  not  yrt  Irarncd  the  usclfssness  of 
violent  rtsistante  to  organized  power,  and  for  a  time 
they  fouj^ht  Iru  k.  In  Pitt-bur^'  they  monie:  '  irily 
oxcreame  some  lompaniis  of  militiamen,  but  the  battle 
qui(kly  endi-d.  The  workers  were  shot  and  bayoni  ted 
and  dubbed  baik  to  defeat  and  submission.  liut  Labor 
is  born  of  the  earth,  and  wlun  eru>hed  to  earth  draws 
new  streuf^th  and  new  weapons  from  its  very  defeat. 

In  1.SO9  a  little  band  of  workers,  having  discovered 
that  open  organization  only  invited  the  vengeance  of  the 
new  form  oi  outlawry,  -  the  blacklist,  -  met  at  Phil- 
adelphia, and  under  the  cover  of  secrecy,  formed  a  so- 
ciety whose  very  name  was  never  written,  but  was  indi- 
cated by  five  star-,  whenever  it  was  necessary  to  refer  to  it 
with  pen  or  tyjie.  This  society  grew  slowly,  but  steadily, 
until  the  strike  of  1S77,  but  it  was  not  large  enough  at 
that  time  to  play  any  important  {)art  in  that  struggle. 
The  strike  and  its  momentary  defeat  so  suddenly  and 
dramatically  impressed  the  need  of  organization  upon 
the  workers  that  vast  numbers  Hocked  to  this  new  organi- 
zation. This  sudden  influx  of  members  rendered  the 
extreme  secrecy  of  earlier  years  both  imi^ossible  and 
unnecessary,  and  the  mystical  five  stars  were  discarded 
and  replaced  by  the  words  "Knights  of  Labor." 

At  this  time  the  spirit  of  the  American  labor  move- 
ment was  as  thoroughly  tilled  with  the  great  revolution- 
ary tendency  of  the  times  as  that  of  any  country  in  the 
world.  The  pioneers  in  its  organization  were  largely  Ger- 
man refugees  of  1S4S  and  the  succeeding  years.     Many 


TRILMI'II   A.NIJ    I)F;CAIJI;\CK   of   CAI'ITAI.ISM 


.5' 5 


had  bcvn  connciini  with  the  International  Workinj,'- 
nu-n's  Association  (i..l-  "Old  Intt-rnalional"  founded  by 
Marx).  The  whole  ritual,  literature,  and  spirit  of  the 
"Knij^'hts  of  Labor"  wa>.  permeated  with  v.ij^ue  social- 
ism. This  spirit  now  found  e.xpression  in  the  ei^ht- 
hour  crusade  that  swept  the  laboring  ma»es  of  the  coun- 
try with  a  sort  of  relij^iou>  enihu.Masni.  This  movement, 
like  the  "Knights  of  Labor,"  had  started  shortly  after 
the  close  of  the  Civil  War,  and  had  remained  dormant 
untd  about  iS8o.  Then  it  gathered  momentum  until 
by  1885  it  hud  become  nation-wide  and  taken  on  more 
and  more  the  character  of  a  religious  crusade. 

In  some  way  the  impression  became  general  that  the 
first  of  May.  1886.  had  been  fixed  upon  as  the  day  of  the 
millennial  dawn  of  the  eight-hour  heaven  on  earth.  Xo 
organization  of  any  imi)ortance  fi.xed  this  date.  The 
"Knights  of  Labor,"  whose  members  had  grown  .so 
rapidly  that  its  general  oflkers  were  refusing  to  charter 
new  locals,  lest  the  organization  become  unmanageable, 
especially  disavowed  this  date  as  being  set  for  any 
action. 

Yet  the  movement  grew,  and  reached  such  proportions 
as  to  threaten  a  serious  reduction  in  the  share  that 
Capital  was  taking  of  Labor's  product.  Something 
like  a  panic  seized  upon  the  ruling  class.  Men  elected 
to  office  by  laborers  were  deliberately  counted  out  in 
Chicago.  This  caused  some  of  the  leaders  of  labor  to 
lose  their  heads  and  talk  vaguely  of  violence.  Then 
some  one,  whether  fool,  fanatic,  or  police  spy,  we  shall 
probably  never  know,  threw  a  bomb  into  a  detachment 
of  police  who  were  breaking  up  a  meeting  on  Haymarket 
Square  in  Chicago  —  a  meeting  that  the  mayor  of  that 


3i6 


SOCIAL  FORCLS  I\   AMERICAN   HISTORY 


|i  : 


city  but    an   hour   before   had   declared  to  be  wholly 
peaceable. 

Then  all  the  fiends  of  vengeance,  controlled  by  the 
powers  of  plutocracy,  broke  loose.  Few  would  deny 
to-day  that  evidence  was  manufactured  by  wholesale 
by  the  Chicago  police  and  newspapers,  or  that  even  class 
law  was  stretched  to  the  break'ng  point  that  the  leaders 
of  labor  might  be  brought  to  the  scaffold.  They  were 
brought  to  the  scaffold,  and  the  exploiters  of  labor  re- 
joiced that  resistance  to  exploitation  was  crushed  There 
was  more  reason  for  rejoicing  than  ever  before.  The 
appeal  to  violence  and  anarchistic  individualism  set 
back  for  many  years  the  intelligent  defense  of  Labor's 
interest.  The  American  labor  movement,  hitherto 
inspired  and  largely  dominated,  even  if  in  a  somewhat 
indefinite  manner,  by  the  spirit  of  intelligent  class  revolt, 
now  fell  largely  under  the  control  of  its  most  reactionary 
and  short-sighted  element. 

Organized  labor  in  the  United  States  became  separated 
from  all  political  action  or  social  philosophy  save  that 
of  expediency  and  opportunism,  and  the  road  was  thrown 
wide  for  corruption  and  confusion.  There  were  many 
causes  for  this,  but  it  is  doubtful  if  this  period  of 
isolation  and  partial  sterility  in  the  broader  fields  of 
action  would  have  come,  had  it  not  been  for  the  oppor- 
tunity for  judicial  murder  and  popular  prejudice  created 
by  those  who  appealed  to  anarchy  and  condoned 
violence. 

But  no  power  on  earth  can  permanently  crush  Labor. 
Gradually  its  revolt  has  grown  conscious.  Gradually 
it  has  evolved  its  philosophy  in  common  with  those  of 
other  nations.     Slowly  at  first,  but  with  ever  increasing 


ll'i 


Jl€l    '-^f^^r^^-r  '^\ 


'«>*-: 


■^^•.:W=.l  • 


TRIUMPH   AND   DECADENCE  OF   CAPITALISM 


317 


speed,  it  has  been  translating  its  economic  interests  into 
political  and  industrial  action. 

Like  the  commercial  and  plantation  interests  that 
brought  about  separation  from  Great  Britain  and  for- 
mulated the  Constitution,  like  the  chattel  slave  owners 
that  controlled  the  government  and  molded  it  for  two 
generations,  like  the  capitalist  class  that  rode  into  power 
amid  the  blood  and  fraud  and  terror  of  civil  war  and 
Reconstruction,  the  working  class  has  become  in  its 
turn  the  embodiment  of  the  spirit  of  social  progress, 
and  is  fighting  for  victory  with  a  certainty  of  success 
before  it. 

Every  class  that  has  controlled  the  powers  of  govern- 
ment has  used  these  powers  to  create  a  society  after  its 
own  image.  The  workers  will  do  the  same.  While 
history  may  appear  to  have  nothing  to  do  with  the  future, 
it  is  impossible  to  draw  the  lines  of  social  forces  through 
all  the  perspective  of  the  past  and  then  stop  them  short 
at  the  present. 

The  same  forces  that  have  operated  in  the  past  will 
continue  in  the  future.  New  and  more  effective  machines 
will  be  invented  and  hitched  to  more  powerful  and  yet 
undiscovered  sources  of  energy.  Concentration  and 
ownership  of  these  instruments  and  forces  will  proceed 
while  they  remain  private  property.  Labor  will  grow 
farther  and  farther  away  from  the  possibility  of  owner- 
ship of  those  things  to  which  the  lives  of  laborers  are 
attached. 

Out  of  these  facts  the  workers  of  the  world  in  pursuit 
of  their  class  interests  have  evolved  a  line  of  action  that 
leads  to  organization  for  the  attainment  of  political 
power.     Labor,  like  the  merchant  csas?,  chattel   slave 


■"*;: 


TSvMSg^' 


3i8 


SOCIAL  FORCES   IN  AMFUICAN  HISTORY 


owners,  and  capitalists,  is  fighting  for  political  power.  It 
will  use  that  political  power  to  obtain  control  of  the 
instruments  essential  to  the  lives  of  the  workers.  That 
ownership  cannot  be  individual.  Industry  cannot  be 
disintegrated  back  to  the  stage  of  individual  ownership. 
It  must  be  still  further  integrated  into  common  owner- 
ship by  a  democratically  controlled  government  of  the 
workers. 

Labor  is  certain  of  victory  in  this  last  struggle.  All 
other  classes  have  gained  power  only  as  they  have  per- 
suaded, bribed,  or  terrorized  workers  into  fighting  or 
voting  for  them.  Now  that  the  working  class  is  fight- 
ing its  own  battles,  there  is  no  possibility  of  defeat. 


•s^r  kl'lr'    i^A^-i'i 


Sf? 


INDEX 


Al.bot,  Wlllia  J.,  ,58. 

Abolitionism,  218-^19. 

Aii.iMis.  Henry,  104. 

Aiiams,  Ilcrbfrt  D..  65. 

Ailams,  John.  61,  218. 

Aiiams,  S.imucI,  7,^-74,  02. 

Agricultural  machinery,  24S,  278. 

AKriculture,  40-51."  at  formation  of 
the  Union,  102  ;  mother  of  industry, 
121  ;  on  frontier,  ijO  i,i7;  on  eve  of 
Civil  War,  248;  during  Civil  War, 
27S-280. 

Alien  and  Sedition  Laws,  120. 

Alvord.  H.  ^^,  10,5. 

Ames.  1-isher,  88. 

Anarchists.  Chicago.  ,515-316. 

Annafxjlis  convention,  94. 

Arnold.  S.  G.,  91. 

Aster.  John  Jacob,  159. 

Austrian  Succession,  War  of,  57. 

Babcock,  K.  C,  146,  157. 
Back-country,  struggle  with  coast,  46, 

S3.  56;    opposition  to  constitution, 

98. 
Bacon's  Rebellion,  47-49. 
Bagnall,  \V.  R.,  37. 
Baker.  Karnes,  234. 
i'altimore.  102. 
Bank  of  I'nited  States,  first,  161 ;   sec- 

nd.  162-163,  205-208;    and  Daniel 

'    jbster,  205. 
Bankers  and  Civil  War,  280. 
Bankruptcy,  167. 
Bassett,  J.  S.,  112,  124,  230. 
Benton,  Thomas  H.,  160,  165,  172,  203, 

204,  206. 
Berkeley,  Governor,  47. 
Bishop,  Leander  J.,  88,  96,   122,   159, 

105- 
Bi.iinc.  J.'imcs  0.,  294. 
Bogart,  Krnst  L.,  195,  223,  246,  247. 


Bolies,  Albert  .*^.,  35.  37.  238,  239,  245, 
240.  247,  276,  277,  280,  282. 

Boston.  76.  102,  179. 

Boston  Tea  I'arty,  63-64. 

Brisbane.  .Mbert,  214,  255, 

Brown,  John,  2Ik>. 

Brown,  William  (i.,  222,  230,  237,  239, 
268. 

Bruce,  Phillip  .\.,  46. 

Br\anf.  W.  C,  256. 

Burr,  .Xaron,  125. 

Byllcsby,  L.,  188. 

(^at)ct,  Etienne,  214. 

Cairns.  W.  B  ,  ifxj. 

Calhoun,  John  C  .  157,  162,  202,  226. 

California,  disiovery  of  gold  in,  253. 

Cambridge  Modern  History,  10. 

Campbell,  iH. 

Capitalist  class,  rise  of,  254-255. 

Capitalist  society,  characteristics  of, 
307-308. 

Carey,  Matthew.  148.  154,  156. 

Carlton.  Frank  T.,  177. 

Cattle  in  New  England  colonies,  35. 

Cavaliers.  4^-46. 

Chadwick.  Frank  F,.,  22(1. 

Chamberlain,  Daniel  H.,  298. 

Chamberlain.  Mellen,  70. 

Ciianning,  V...  214. 

Channing,  William  K.,  169. 

Charity,  beginnings  of,  i6(). 

Charleston,  102. 

Chattel  slavery,  atavism  in  .\merica, 
268-269  :  concentration  of  ow  nership 
in.  224;  inferior  in  firoductive  [«>wer 
to  wage  system  228-230:  industrial 
eflects  of,  232;  movement  to  South, 
i,Vi-J it :  demand  for  more  territorj', 
236;  sei  urity  for  social  (x-ace,  225. 

Chtnty,  r.ii»iar>i  P.,  4,  5. 

Chevalier,  Michael,  174,  178. 


319 


320 


INDEX 


Chici^o,   igi  ;    Krain  shipments  from, 

ChiM   lalior  in  early  cotton  fa' tories, 

172    I7( 

Chiltindiii,  II.  M.,  -'Ov 

Church  ami  Mcri  Hants.  ?.  ' 

Ci'iis    at    fnrmation    of    I'nion,    lOi  ;  , 
gri)Wtli  iif  pupulatinii,  250,    struKKli-' 
for  market,  Kjij  JOO-  i 

Civil  War,  corr\iiilioii  diirinK,  280-2.HJ  ;  1 
cotton  six-i  Illation  iluririK.   2,Si-2H2; 
ctTc'ct  on  imiustry,  275   277;    rman( - 
inKof,  282;   patents  during,  277.  ; 

Clay,  Henry.  I5<.  ^oi.  212.  1 

CoM),  I'.lkanah,  i.y).  I 

Col)l),  Thomas  K.,  22O. 

Columhu-i.  Christopher,  i,  10,  11.  j 

Coman,  Katherine,  44,  246. 

Commerce,  in  iSio,  130;  in  1846,  24'); 
progress  ot.  i  20.  j 

Commercial  interests  and  constitu- 
tion, 88. 

Committees  of  Correspondence,  7J,  8j. 

Commons,  John  R.,  25(). 

Commonwealth,  Knglish.  70. 

Communism,     primitive    in     colonies. 

Concentration  in  chattel  slave  owner- 
ship, 224. 

Coiuenlration  in  imiustry,  jog-jio. 

Confederation,  Art'cles  of,  gg. 

Constitution,  adoption  of,  07-08. 

Constituticm  and  Hill  of  Rights,  08, 

Constitutional  convention  a  conspira- 
fory  body,  <):-<>\:  secrecy  of,  05. 

Continental  Congress,  S?,  84,  Q4-gS. 

C(mtinental  currency,  S(). 

Corn,  imijorlancc  of,  1,57. 

Cornwallis,  surrender  of.  So. 

Corruption  during  Reconstruction, 
248. 

Cotton,  and  blockade,  272-27.;;  and 
negro  slaver>-,  102,  2ig-22o;  in 
Reconstruction,  2g2;  trade  during 
Civil  War,  281-282. 

Cotton  gin,  12?. 

Cotton,  Joseph  1'.,  126. 

Cotton  mills,  122,  i4g. 

Courts    created    by    Federalists,    1:3- 

I  2(). 

Coxe,  'iViiclie,  155. 
Crime  in  1820,  168. 


Crisis,  of  i8iq,  160-168;   of  1857.  igo; 
of  1873,  ,50<j;   of  iSg4,  jo<; ;   of  igo8, 

.^og- 

Crittenden  Resolution,  2gO. 
Cromweil,  (Jliver,  jO,  47- 
Crusades,  6. 
Cumberland  Road,  158. 
C'lnniiiKiiam,  William,  8. 
Curtis,  I'rancis,  257. 

U.ina,  Charles  .\.,  255. 

Davis  John  I'.,  230,  240. 

l)eb«i.v,  J.  I».,  225,  227,  231,  252,  253, 

200   207.  285. 
Del't,  impri.^onment  for,  80  87,  176. 
Debt,  national,  111115. 
Debtor  class  and  constitution,  8g. 
Debts,  assumption  of  stale,  112-1 13. 
Demands    of    early    labor    movement, 

183-186. 
l)e|)cu-,  Chauncey  M.,  201. 

Dewey,  D.  R.,  118. 

Dexter,  Kdwin  (1.,  177.  187- 

I)icken<,  Charles,  210. 

DitTcnderfer,  Frank  R..  17. 
'.  Dodge,  104. 

Dome-itic  Animals,  102-104. 
'  Donaldson,  Thomas,  204,  208. 

Douglas,  Stephen  A.,  igi,  217. 
!  Doyle,  J.  .\.,  31.  141- 
i  Draft  riots,  283. 
!  Drake,  Charles  n.,  I37- 

Dred  Scott  decision,  238-259. 

DuBois,  W.  K.  D.,  2qO. 

Duti  h  West  India  Co.,  30. 

Dwight,  Timothy,  231. 

Fast  Imlia  Company,  63. 

Education,  demands  of  labor  movement 

concerning,  181-183. 
Fducatioii,  public,  177. 
Fllis,  C.e<irge  F.,  72- 
Emancipation  of  negro,  274. 
I^mbargo.  145-146. 
Fmerick,  C.  F.,  161. 
Fmerson,  Ralph  Waldo,  214.  256. 
Erie  canal,  15**.  lOS-'g?.  ^S'- 
Evans,  Oliver,  122,  171. 
Excise  tax,  117. 
Express,  beginning  of,  242-244. 

Factory  system,  begianing  of,  103,  147  ; 


■.^r. 


1 


IXDEX 


321 


efforts  to  cncour  ICC,  14S;    evcilution 

of,  170;   in  the  Wtst,  152. 
Factory  workers,  mi-iery  of  early,  172- 

174- 
Farmers',     Sfechanus'    and     Working- 

mrn's  Advocatr,  182. 
Farrand,  M.,  0'). 
Faux,  \V.,  lo;. 
Fish  ;j.  Western  Meat,  204. 
Fisher,  Filwood,  2b.\. 
Fisher,  S.  (i.,  75. 
Fisheries,  25  ;    as  cause  of  Revolution, 

()2-()i;   after  Revolution,  So. 
Fiske,  John,  41,  42,  43,  45,  4(5,  50,  52,  5,5, 

8,5. 
Fitth,  John,  lo^i. 
Fite.  Kmerson  !>.,  252,  27O,  270. 
Fitzhugh,  (ieor^ie,  234. 
Fleming,  Waher  K.,  26Q,  2g2. 
Flick,  A.  {-.,  T2. 

Flint,  Timothy,  150.  i^i,  193,  194,  ig6. 
Ford.  Kl(cnezer,  iSi,  184. 
Ford,  H.  J.,  g4. 
Forests,  influence  of,  25. 
Fourier,  Francois  (",  M,,  214. 
Franklin,  Benjamin,  53,  57,  116. 
Freedman's  Bureau,  296. 
Free  i.ntiuirer,  1S2. 
Frelinchuyscn,  Freilerick  T.,  301. 
Fremont,  John  C,  25S. 
French  and  lndi:in  War,  57,  60,  66. 
French  Revolution.  151. 
Fronti'T,  inlluence  in  American  history, 

134-142;     and   Jackson,    200;     and 

laborers,  178;   meaning  of,  139. 
Fur-trade,  26,  49,  205. 

Gannett,  IF,  142. 

Garrison,  William  Lloyd,  217. 

Geis<'r,  Karl  F.,  17. 

German  immigrants,  15-16. 

Gibhins,  H.  de,  i<)0. 

Cjoode,  John  I'aul,  21. 

Goodloe,  Daniel  R.,  232. 

Goriion,  Charles,  194, 

Gouge,  William  U.,  160,  163,  164,  168, 

206. 
Granger  movement,  307. 
Grant,  William,  200,  252. 
Great  Lakes,  commerce  on,   257;    re- 

eion  d'.irini.;  Civil  W.ir,  275;    settle 

ment  of,  249. 

Y 


C.reeley.  Horace,  255. 
dreinbaik  movement,  287. 
(irecne.  1^  B..  44. 
;  (iregg.  William,  230. 

'  Hall,  Benjamin  F.,  2^7. 

I  Hamilton,  Alexander,  01,  g6,  gS,  log- 

I       1 19. 

I  Hammoml,  M.  B.,  223,  23?. 

Hancock,  John,  (u,  b2,  (jj. 

Hanseatic  Le:ig\ie.  8. 

H.irrison,  Willi. im  H.,  212-213. 

Hart.  .Mbert  liushnell,  219. 

H:i>mark<t  riot.  315- 

Heath.  I)avid.  171. 
1  Hilmholt.  5- 

HeliHT,  Hinton  Rowan.  228-230. 

Herbert,  Hilary  H.,  294,  297. 

Hildrilli,  Kii  h.ird.  129. 

Hill,  Rowland.  2  (4- 

Holmes.  01i\cr  W.,  256. 

Homestead  Law,  306. 

Hosmer,  J.  K.,  73,  92. 

Howe.  f%li.is.  24s,  276. 

Howe,  William,  76-79. 

Hulbcrt,  A.  B.,  200. 

Immigration,  230,  306. 

Imprisonment  for  debt,  176. 

Indians.  27-21),  53-34- 

Ingle.  ICilward,  231,  255. 

International  capitalism.  311-312. 

Inventions.  2-\,  195,  245. 

Iron,  colonial.  37;  industry,  106,  305; 
inventions  in.  los;  changes  in.  245- 
246;  in  Civil  War,  277;  in  Confed- 
eracy, 270-271;  rails,  245;  shijv 
building,  246. 

Irving,  Washington,  qo. 

Jacksonian  Democracy,  209-211. 

James  I  of  Fngland,  43. 

Jay,  John,  124. 

Jefferson,  Thomas,  113,  124,  133,  145, 

15,5- 
Johnson,  .Andrew,  :S(), 
Johnson,  I^niory  K.,  238. 
Johnson,  James  F.  W.,  234. 

Kennedy,  J.  H.,  277. 
Kfntiuky    "a-ttlrrr.!-:!!  s-.f,  T53, 

1  Rettel,  Thomas  P.,  231,  233. 


•^., 


i^ft-. 


..jav-jA^-; 


322 


INDEX 


Kin'liTKartcns,    demanded    by    Lalxjr, 

lH(. 
Kiii^'lils  of  Labor,  314-315- 
Kuhii-;,  Osear,  16. 

Labor,  final  triumph  certain,  317-318. 
Lal><)r  movement,  results  of  early,  184- 

1K7. 
Labor  unions,  312-316. 
Lalur.  J.  J.,  2g4. 

Land  k'ranls  to  ("onfederation,  84. 
Land  s|)etulation.  iS- 
Lik'i-'lalures,  colonial,  08. 
Leisicr,  Jaiob.  53.  $<)■ 
Levasseur,  K.,  27(). 
Lewis  and  ('larl<  exploration,  159. 
Libby,  Orin  (;..  oS, 
Library,  Congressional,  153. 
Linc(jln,  .\braham,  217,  2O1,  286,  289, 

2')».  I 

Lodse,  Henry  Cabot,  2,  42. 
Lo>;an.  John  A.,  13.S. 
Loncfellow,  Henry  W.,  256. 
Loui-^l)urK.  capture  of,  57. 
Louisiana,  purchase  of,  128-129. 
Lowell,  I'rancis  C.,  i.((;. 
Lowell,  \V.  R.,  250. 
Luther,  Seth,  174. 

Macaulay,  Thomas  B.,  16. 

MacRreKor,  John,  i<j3,  194,  198. 

Madison  family,  46. 

Madison,  James,  94,  95,  98. 

Maize,  136-137. 

Man,  The,  180. 

Mann,  Horace.  1S7. 

Manufactures,  194-195;  and  Civil  War, 
275-277;  Hamilton's  Report  on, 
115-116;  and  Revolution,  64;  .at 
close  of  Revolution,  87  ;  in  the  South, 
230,  269. 

Afarshall  family,  46. 

Marshall,  John,  126,  164, 

Martineau,  Harriet,  210. 

-Marx,  Karl,  iSo.  255.  284. 

.Mason  and  Dixon's  Line,  55. 

^[as<)n  family,  4(>. 

Massachusetts.  (»:  education  in,  177; 
manufacturinK  in,  37. 

McCarthv,  Charles.  200. 

McCormiik,  ("vn'S.  21':. 

McCullough  IS.  .Maryland,  164. 


Mc.Master,  John  Barh,  40,  86,  87,  90 
92,  129,  130,  131,  132,  133.  146,  148, 
152,  15S,  i(,2,  i(.,5,  165,  174,  182,  204, 

205,    207,   20(J. 

Meatpacking,  195. 
Mrchdnii^'  Free  J'rrts,  iSo,  182. 
Mercantile  domination  in  government, 

154- 
Mercantile   System   of  economics,   60, 

64. 
Merchant  class,  2,  4,  108. 
Michaux,  v.  A.,  137. 
Minot,  (i.  R.,  yi. 
Mississippi,  State,  condition  after  War, 

28S. 
Mississippi  River,  124,  247,  252. 
^^ob  methods  in  Revolution,  74. 
Monroe  family,  46. 
MoonshiiiinK,  117-118. 
More,  Sir  Thomas,  13-14. 
Morse,  J.  I).,  94. 
Moseley,  fvlward  .\.,  201. 
Motley,  J.  L.,  256. 
Myers,  (lustavus,  187,  205,  206. 

N'ail  imlustry,  106. 

N'apoleon  L  108,  144. 

National  Labor  L'nion,  312. 

Navigation  laws,  61. 

Negro,   condition    after  emancipation, 

29s  ;    submissiveness.  274 ;    suffrage, 

203-2Q4.     200 ;      swindling     during 

Reconstruction,  298. 
New  Kngland,  33-40,  129,  146,  159. 
New  Orbans,  159. 
New  York  city,  loi ;   influence  of  Erie 

Canal.  200;  trade  unions  in,  179. 
Niles.  Henrv',  16^,  167. 
.\ilrs'   IVeekiy  RenisU-r,   122,   132,   157, 

160,  166,  174;  founded,  149. 

Ogg,  Frederick  A.,  58. 

Ohio  River,  influence  in  settlement,  158. 

Ordinance  of  1787,  84-85,  128. 

Oriental  trade.  5. 

Ostrogorski,  M.,    125,    132,   168,  211, 

254- 
Owen,  Robert,  iSg. 
Owen,  Robert  Dale,  281. 

P.i.-inr  r,i!!a.-r?y,  239. 
Palatinate  Germans,  15-17,  51. 


i^m^m^^:':SMe~-m 


Wt£r :.  &i:^f:?:M  m 


■A 


ms 


INDEX 


323 


Paper  money,  54,  66. 

Parkinson,  i,;?. 

Parkinscjn's  Tour,  10,?. 

I'alents,   140;    for  scythe,  37 ;    during 

Civil  War,  277. 
Pautx.'rism  in  iSig,  167. 
Peek,  Charles  H.,  204,  212,  219. 
I'eck,  J.  \.,  IQ5,  ,q^. 
Pcnn,  William,  sy. 
I'ennsylvania,  early  education  system 

of,  1H2;  manufactures  in,  14S. 
I'hiladclphia,  loi ;    early  union  move- 
ment in,  180. 
Phillips,  I',  B.,  145. 
I'hillips,  Wendell,  217. 
Piedmont  Plateau,  influence  on  settle 

ment,  45. 
Pike,  James  S.,  273. 
Pine  Tree  ShillinKs,  sq. 
Pioneers,  various  stages,  135-136. 
Piracy,  in  New  York,  51-52 
PittsburK.  58,  igs. 
Plantation    interest,  and    constitution, 

88-8g;    War  of  1812,  145. 
Plantation   system,   origin   of,   43-44; 

changes  in,  223. 
Platforms  of  early  Labor  Party,  184- 

186. 
Political  machines,  2 10-21 1. 
Pollard,  Edwaril  .V.,  217. 
Poor  whites,  227-230. 
Population     in     colonial     times,     56; 

movement  toward  cities,  305. 
"opulists,  307. 
Portuguese  explorations,  0. 
Postal   system,   of  Confederacy,    271- 
272  ;  establishment  of,  57 ;  at  forma- 
tion of  Union,  loi ;    service  of,  241- 
244. 
Property     qualifications     for     voting 

I7S- 
.  uhlic  land,  and  crisis  of  1837,   208; 
Foote  resolution  on,  203  ;  grants  of, 
to  railroads,  239;    in    formation  of 
Union,  84. 


Ranching  stage,  138;  in  Illinois,  194. 
Randolph  family,  46. 
!  Randolph,  John,  153. 
j  Relwls,  hereditary  pioneer,  140. 
I  Reconstruction,  285-303. 
j  Reinsch,  Paul  .S.,  294. 
Religious   changes   i;i    New    England 

i68-i6g. 
Renaissance,   relation  to  discovery  of 

America,  2. 
Republican  Party,  255-258,  261. 
Revolution,  .\merican,  boycott  in,  74; 
mob  violence  in,  74;    smuggling  as 
cause  of,  O1-63. 
Revolution   of    1S48   and    emigration, 

250. 
Rhode  Island,  91,  99. 
Rhodes,   James   Ford,    258,    370,    374, 

27s.  ^79.  i8i,  296,  301. 
Rice  industry,  104. 
Ringwalt,  I.  L.,  32,  158,  197, 198. 
Ripley,  George,  214. 
Risson,  Paul,  3. 
Roosevelt,  Theodore,  136-137. 
Ropes,  John  C,  265. 
Rotation  in  office,  210. 
Rum-molasses-slave  trade,  38-39. 


R-  bbeno,  Ugo,  116. 

R.ilroads,  beginning  of,  197-199;  in 
Confederacy,  271;  commerce  on, 
.''4_7;  grants  to,  239,  304-305;  Pa- 
f'Sc,  2  4v;  progress  prior  to  Civil 
War,  238. 


Salisbury,  J.  H.,  137. 

Salt  tariff  opposed  by  West,  J04. 

•Santa  Fe  Trail,  205. 

Sawmill,  first,  38. 

Schaper,  W.  A.,  222. 

Schouler,  J.,  65,  94,  117,  206,  26a. 

Schulte,  .Moys,  5. 

Schurz,  Carl,  256. 

Schwab,  John  C,  263,  271. 

Scotch-Irish,  iS. 

Secession,    cause   of,    237;    and   Civil 
War,  216-217. 

Semple,  Ellen,  142,  193,  196. 

Sentinel.  The  Daily,  180. 

Shaler,  N.  S.,  137. 

Shart)less.  Isaac,  54. 

Shays'  Rebellion,  90-92. 

Simons,  May  Wood,  67. 

Simpson,  Stephen,  i88. 

Skidmore,  Thomas,  188. 
Slater,  Samuel,  105. 
Slaves,  rhattel.  c,-,6,  ,04;  and  Cotton 
gm,  123;   and  Civil  War,  218;   con- 
ditions of,  223 ;  foreign  trade  in,  234- 


324 


INDEX 


2  ;5  ;  privf  of,  ijj ;  and  tubacio,  4J  ; 

aivl  w.iKi'-workrrs,  gO. 
Sl^ivtry,  iK'Hro,  in  lllinuis,  ui2. 
Sl.ivfry  of  tolonial  wliitts,  iS   ig. 
Smith,  J.  Alkti,  <)(). 
Smith.  William  11.,  104,  2$(>. 
Smuy^lLTS  and  Revolution,  75. 
SmuK'K'linK  as  cause  of  the  Ktvolution, 

So(  ialists  and  ("ivil  War,  285  -284. 
Soil,  I'tTei  I  on  sc-ttltmtnl,  2j;    on  cot- 
ton rai-sim;,  222. 
South,  industrial  inferiority,  265. 
SparKo,  John,  2S4. 
Stamp  Act,  ')S. 
Stanwood,  FMwin,  122,  157. 
State  Kovernments  and  Keconstruction, 

28g-2(X3. 

Stcamtxjat,  first,  106 ;  in  Western 
waters,  isg;  on  Clreat  Lakes,  197; 
on  ocean,  246. 

Steam  in  cotton  mills,  171. 

Stedman,  Charles,  62. 

Stevi-ns,  Thaddeus,  2go,  2qi,  300. 

Stickney,  1.57. 

Stimpson,  A.  L.,  24,3. 

Strikes,  313,  314,  315  ;  as  conspiracies, 

131- 

Sumner,  William  O.,  65. 

Supreme  Court  and  Dred  Scott  deci- 
sion, 258-251);  and  Reconstruction, 
300-302. 

Swank,  James  M.,  245. 

Swank,  M.  D.,  u,s. 

Sylvis,  James,  ('.,  283. 

Sylvis,  William  H.,  283. 

Tammany,  125,  210. 

Tanner,  II.  S.,  iqq. 

TaritT.    loq-iio,    115-117,    140;     and 

chattel     slavery,      235-236;       labor 

arijument  for,  256. 
Tea-tax  and  Revolution,  63-64. 
Telegraph,  230. 
Texas,  as  granary  of  Confederacy,  270, 

271. 
Textile  industries,  122. 
Thatiher.  Samuel,  i6g. 
Thoroau,  Henry  D.,  214. 
Thuaites,  R.  G.,  56. 
Toh.icco.   li-ts.   '04- 
Tocciueville,  .Alexander  De,  210. 


Tories  in  Revolution,  71-72. 
Transcen<ientalism,  214. 
Transixirt.ition,    in    colonies,    31  ;     at 

formation  of  I'nion,  100. 
Tribune,  New  York,  255   25O. 
Trumbull,  Jonathan,  61. 
Turner,  I-rederick  J.,  142,  152,  153,  164, 

105,  168,  202,  205. 
Tyler,  John,  21  j. 
Tyler,  M.  C,  72. 

l'ncmiil(.yed  in  iSiq,  166. 
I'nion.  plans  for  colonial,  sg. 
Unions,  tirst,  174-180. 
Utopian  communism,  214. 
Utrecht,  treaty  of,  56. 

Van  Burcn,  Martin,  211. 

Virginia,  colonial,  4i-4g;  decline  of 
industry  in.  153:  dynasty,  fall  of, 
153  ;   House  of  Burgesses,  43. 

Von  Hoist,  Herman  E.,  44,  i2g,  225, 
226,  235. 

Wages,  130-13 1  ;  in  1810,  173, 

Wageworkers  and  constitution,  8g. 

Wampum,  35- 

War,  effect  on  manufactures,  147, 

War  of  181 2,  143-147. 

Warden,  I).  B.,  148,  161. 

Washington  family,  46. 

Washington,  George,  58,  76,  100;  as 
land  speculator,  65. 

Watson,  Thomas,  65,  g4,  153. 

Webster,  T)aniel,  157,  202,  203;  and 
Bank,  205-206;  and  taritT,  168. 

Webster,  William  C,  3,  88.  g6,  120. 

Weeden.  W.  B.,  32,  34.  35.  36,37.39.40- 

Wells,  David  A..  275,  277. 

Wells,  David  H,  61. 

West  opposes  Bank,  164. 

Western  immigration,  152. 

Weston,  George  M.,  227. 

Westphalia,  Peace  of,  15. 

Weydemeyer,  Joseph,  256. 

Whig  Party,  212. 

Whiskey  Rebellion,  118. 

White,  Horace,  165,  206. 

Whitney,  Eli.  123. 

Whittier,  J.  G.,  256. 
i  Wiiiiamsoti,  Captain,  103. 
I  Wilson,  Henry,  237. 


l!l' 


y-.;:.:.-n<.r--  :.-^ 


at 


4, 


INDEX 


325 


Wilson    Woodrow.  48.    86,    ,.g.    :o,,  |  Women,  ht-or  of.  in  oarly  .ot,o„  mill.. 


Windfn.  Julius,  ioo. 
Winsor,  Justin.  65,  70,  7j,  (j6. 
\V(H.|fn.  industry,  105;    effect  of  Civil 


W 


ar  on,  i/o. 


i7.i   17J. 
Hwi/»j;i;m<'n'j     .IJ:»,  j;,-,      //„• 

Uorkinsmen's  tiiktt.  181. 
I  Wright,  Carroll  D.,  171. 


id 


u 


?M^- 


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American  History  told  by  Contemporaries 

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The  Foundations  of  American  Foreign  Policy 

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A  Documentary  Source-Book  of  American  History 

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A  History  of  American  Political  Theories 

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SMITH 

The  United   States:    An  Outline  of  Political    Historv. 
1492-1871  ' 

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•It  is  not  probable  that  wl  shall  see  a  more  complete  or  better 
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History  of  the  United  States 

From  the  Compromise  of  1850  to  the  Final  Restora- 
tion OF  Home  Rule  at  the  South  in  1877 
By  JAMES   FORD    RHODES,  LL.D.  Litt.D. 

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1850-1854 

II. 
1854-1860 


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I 860- I 862 


IV. 

1863-1864 


V. 

I864-I866 


VI. 

I866-I873 


VII. 

1873-1877 


The  firM  volume  tells  the  hi^torv  of  th--  country  dunnR  th.-  four  y.v.rs 
futile  attempt  to  avoid  conflict  by  the  Comi.romise  of  1850,  en>ling 
with  the  np.Ml  in  1854  of  the  Missouri  Compromise. 
The  second  volume  deals  with  llie  stirring  events  which  followed 
this  rep.Ml.  through  all  th,'  Kansas  and  N.-braska  struggles  t,  the 
triumph  of  th-  th'-n  newlv  org.inued  Republican  party  in  the  election 
of  Lincoln  in  i860. 

The  third  volume  stales  the  immediate  effect  upon  the  count-v  of 
Lincoln's  election;  covers  the  period  of  actual  secession;  the  dra- 
matic op'-nmg  of  the  war.  the  almost  hght-he.,rtf<  ^•^^''P'^'"';  '' " ''^ 
a  ■■  three-months  picnic  "  ;  the  sobering  defeat  of  Hull  Run  ;  and  cl.  si  s 
with  the  military  successes  of  the  North  in  the  winter  and  spring  ot 
1862.  .       . 

Ihe  fourth  volume  follows  the   progress  of  the  war  in  vivid  dis- 
cussions  of  campaigns,  battles,    th<-    patient    search    '"^   'he    ngl, 
commander,  and   ttie  attitude   toward   this  country  of  the  Butish 
government  and  people. 

The  fif'h  volume  opens  with  the  account  of  Sherman's  march  to  the 
sea  The  adoption  of  the  Thirteenth  Amendment,  Lincoln  s  assas- 
sination the  beginning  of  Johnson's  administration,  and  the  state  ot 
society  in  the  north  and  sbuth  at  the  end  of  the  exhausting  w.^r  are 
fully  treated.  The  volume  ends  with  an  account  of  the  poUtical 
campaign  of  1866. 

The  sixth  volume  considers  the  enactment  of  the  Reconstruction 
Acts  and  their  execution;  the  impeachment  of  Presideiit  Johnsori. 
the  rise  of  the  Ku  Klux  Klan,  the  operation  of  the  Preedmans 
Bureau,  the  .adoption  of  the  XlVlh  and  XVth  Amendments  are 
among  other  topics  in  the  volume. 

The  seventh  volume  begins  with  an  account  of  the  Credit  NIobtlier 
scandal,  the  "Salary  Grab"  Act.  and  describes  the  financial  panic 
of  187^.  The  account  of  Reconstruction  is  continued  with  a  carem 
sumtTiing  up,  and  the  work  ends  with  an  account  of  the  president.al 
campaign  of  1876  and  the  disputed  Presidency. 


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The  Promise  of  American  Life 

Bv    HERBERT    CROLY 

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"The  most  profound  and  illuminating  study  <if  our  national  conditions 
which  has  appeared  for  many  years." — Theodore  Kuoskvki.t  in  "Na- 
tionalism and  Popular  Rule,''  Outlook,  Jan.  21,  1911. 

"Since  the  publication  of  Rryce's  'American  fummonwealth,'  there 
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conditions  and  tendencies.  Tnlike  the  great  F.nglish  critic,  however,  Mr. 
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sufficient  basis  in  theory  fur  the  programme  of  a  nationalized  democracy, 
to  demonstrate  that  American  democracy  can  trust  its  welt"«>'e  to  the  dic- 
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and  national  strength.  In  the  accomplishment  of  this  task,  he  provi<le» 
us  with  a  brilliant  and  penetratinjj  review  of  past  hi^>tory  and  pre.'>ent  con- 
ditions, arriving  from  conservative  premises  at  conclusions  \*hich  will 
doubtless  appear  radical  to  many."  —  l-'inancial  Rtvicw. 

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ranted by  the  profundity  of  his  analysis."  —  New  York  Evening  Post. 

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writte.i  in  simple,  yet  consistent  language,  with  a  calm,  clear  judgment 
that  will  make  it  invaluable  to  every  thinking  American." — Ohio  State 
Journal, 

"  All  Americans  will  find  much  to  interest  them  in  the  way  of  instruc- 
tion between  the  covers  of  this  volume.  The  question  of  militarism  is 
thoughtfully  discussed.  The  bjoV  is  informing  10  the  general  public,  and 
will  make  an  excellent  supplementary  volume  for  the  civics  department  in 
schools  and  colleges."  —  Education. 


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